


whatever souls are made of

by atypicalsnowman



Series: whatever souls are made of [1]
Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Disabled Character, Cloak of Levitation (Marvel), Eventual Smut, Happy Ending, M/M, Romance, Soul Bond, Tony Stark/Stephen Strange parenting Peter Parker | Supremefamily | Strange Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2020-03-04 21:24:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 32
Words: 234,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18821023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atypicalsnowman/pseuds/atypicalsnowman
Summary: Soul bonding canon divergence.  Fourteen million futures and Stephen saw just one where they win.  Tony has to soul bond to a virtual stranger whereas Stephen...  Stephen is in love.





	1. The Sacrifice

**Author's Note:**

> The soul bonding fic no one asked for. I had an idea for this fic before watching Endgame, but watching Endgame was definitely what got me back into the game. I need these two idiots to be happy and alive together. This is a WIP and I'm going to try for updating every week. If you know me you know I've never abandoned a fic. 
> 
> Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta.

“Excuse me, but does your friend often do that?”

Tony looked over to where Mantis was pointing and felt his heart drop. Strange was floating, legs crossed and hands wrapped in green mist and those circular symbols he’d used for fighting. The odd way he held his hands and how his body was weirdly contorting made Tony’s skin crawl. He had no idea what was happening, but the twisted look on Strange’s face did nothing to comfort him. Tony approached him slowly. 

He really hated magic.

Strange’s head was moving around so rapidly his face was a blur. Tony had no idea how to interfere or if he should. The decision was made for him when he finally tore his eyes away from Strange’s face and hands and noticed the Time Stone was glowing bright green.

“Strange, we all right?”

His steps sped up when Strange suddenly snapped out of whatever trance he’d been in. Tony caught him quickly as he fell to the ground.

“You’re back. You’re all right.”

Strange first looked at him, then straight through him. He grabbed Tony’s shoulder and gasped for air. Faintly, he felt Strange’s light squeeze, then he finally looked Tony in the eye. “Hi,” he said.

His eyes were brimmed with tears.

“Hey, um, what was that?” Peter asked. 

“I went forward in time to view alternate futures,” Strange said. He looked away from Tony and gazed off into the distance. “To see all the possible outcomes of the coming conflict.”

Quill was the first to ask, “How many did you see?”

“Fourteen million, six hundred and five,” Strange answered.

Strange blinked and the tears had vanished, but the memory of them made Tony dread asking his question. “How many did we win?”

It took a moment for Strange to answer, orange dust blowing past him as he seemed to consider his response. He bit his lip and closed his eyes, the Cloak curling around him. Finally, he looked at Tony and said, “One.”

And just like that the argument over who had the superior plan bit the dust.

“I need to speak with you,” Strange said to Tony. “Privately.” 

Something in Tony’s chest sank. Straightening his shoulders, he nodded and followed Strange back into the wreck of the donut space ship. Walking into the cold, dead bridge felt like he was walking to his death. What had Strange seen and what did he need to tell him?

And what exactly had he seen that had changed him so much? Watching Strange’s trembling hands run through his hair, the way he paced erratically around the bridge was like watching a stranger. There was no trace of the arrogant asshole wizard that Tony had flown to Titan with.

“Strange?” Tony watched as Strange seemed to be drawing little green symbols in mid-air, shaking his head and then starting again. Strange closed his eyes and lowered his head, and this definitely wasn’t the same man who had boldly told Tony he was willing to let him and Peter die in order to save the Time Stone.

“Strange!” he snapped. Finally, Strange looked over at him, just for a moment before a quick look of something like guilt crossed his face and he started muttering to himself again.

“Okay,” Tony said, keeping his voice carefully even. The suspense wasn’t helping. “Whatever you saw obviously did a number on you, so I’m gonna break it down.

“We know Thanos is coming. We know he’s already on his way. Now you tell us there’s only one way for us to win this thing. I’m guessing it has something to do with me.” Tony stopped and took a deep breath, then said, with a calm he absolutely did not feel, “And judging from the way you’re looking everywhere but me, I’m guessing it has something to do with me…what? Dying?”

Strange’s head snapped to Tony and his eyes went wide.

That gave Tony a wealth of information right there. He closed his eyes, breathed through his teeth, tried to wrap his mind around something he’d always half expected.

Surprisingly, the first thing he felt wasn’t anger or denial. A shroud of despair fell over him as he felt hope die. As much as he’d hated to admit it, there had been a little spark of optimism somewhere inside his fragile, broken heart. That little glimmer of hope that told him there was still time to maybe find someone. Maybe someone who understood Tony and would let Tony love them.

But that sort of ending wasn’t for him. He didn’t know why he was so shocked. 

He’d always had a feeling it would end like this. Ever since he woke up in that cave in Afghanistan all those years ago. The hero’s journey ended in sacrifice. The world would get to go on, would get to be happy. The hero got to die happy, knowing they made it happen. 

God, he hadn’t wanted that to be him. His life wasn’t finished yet. There was still so much for him to do. Maybe it hadn’t worked with Pepper, but they were still great friends. He hadn’t thought he was capable of that, but hey, it looked like he could surprise even himself. And Rhodey. He didn’t want to leave his oldest friend. Plus, he’d come to love Peter so much. Maybe he was a terrible father figure, literally putting him in a situation where he was marooned on an alien planet but…

But nothing, he’d gotten the kid marooned on an alien planet. And now, if the look on Strange’s face told him anything, he was going to die without getting him home. He’d make Quill promise to get him back to Earth, and planned to subtly ask if there was room on their ship for one more.

He wouldn’t get to see Peter grow up, Tony realized. That one hurt. But Peter would be safe, he told himself. The biggest monster in the known universe, the one Tony had known was coming for years now, would be dead. Tony too, but there wasn’t anything he could do about that now. 

It would be enough, he told himself. Keep Peter safe. Keep Pepper and Happy and Rhodey safe. One man died, everyone else got to live. Good trade, he told himself, swallowing his grief.

Strange was looking at him like he was about to cry.

“Just tell me, Doc,” Tony said, trying to steady himself for hearing what he already knew in his heart had to be true. That he wasn’t getting off this planet alive, he’d die taking down Thanos.

Instead of just answering him straight like he had while on the ship, Strange slowly approached Tony, stopping just a foot away from him and asked, “Do you trust me?”

“What?” Tony asked, taking a step back.

“Tony, please. Thanos is coming very soon. The fate of the universe is at stake. I need to know if you trust me.”

Tony looked into blue-green eyes, eyes that just a few hours ago had been hard and uncaring towards him, barely any better towards Peter. Now Strange looked at him like he was hanging on Tony’s every word. The warmth in those eyes, the concern, and all of it aimed at Tony. He could see the fear, the terror of the coming battle, but the warmth in them—Tony felt like he was drowning in them. Strange was looking at him like he actually cared about him.

And that couldn’t possibly be true. Strange didn’t even know him. Why would he be so upset that Tony would have to die?

“Tony, please.” Strange’s voice wavered. “Do you trust me enough to believe that what I’m about to tell you is the truth? Even if it sounds unlikely, even if…you don’t like what I have to say?”

Wincing, Tony realized he barely had to consider the question. The answer was yes. Yes, Tony trusted Stephen. For the same reason he’d originally trusted Steve Rogers and Natalie Rushman. 

Because his stupid, stupid heart always wanted to reach out to people. To stop himself from being lonely, to gain the friendship, the companionship that he’d always wanted. He’d made the same mistake over and over and it looked like he was going to do it again.

He wondered if this time would be a mistake. Standing here with the fate of everyone he loved on the line, he felt confident in his answer.

“Yeah,” Tony said. He cleared his throat. “Yes, I trust you.”

Stephen looked surprised. “Why?”

Because it seemed like Tony would never learn his lesson. Because his back seemed to enjoy being a place where friends could keep their knives. Because he’d never learned not to trust his stupid, lonely heart.

Because of the way Stephen was looking at him right now. Like Tony could destroy him with a negative word. Because of the way Stephen had been looking at him for the past fifteen minutes. Like Tony was his entire world right at this moment.

“Because you told the truth back on the ship,” Tony said. “About your duty to that thing,” he gestured to the Time Stone. “You told me you’d let me and Peter die. That’s a shit thing to do, but you were honest about it ahead of time. So I know exactly where I stand with you. So yeah, I trust you.”

Stephen looked properly ashamed. Eyes once again dropping to the floor, he avoided looking at Tony, seeming like he was trying to get ahold of himself. He clenched his fists and said, “I wish I could say that I regret saying that. Or that it isn’t true, but it is.” He looked up and met Tony’s eyes again. “Because it’s my responsibility. Protecting this stone and stopping Thanos is my responsibility. And it’s yours too.”

Tony nodded and his mind was creating a dozen terrible scenarios. He imagined not only having to die, but having to die slowly, painfully. He imagined being tortured while Peter and Quill’s party made off with the stones.

“Not telling me anything I don’t know, Doc. So spit it out. How do we do this?”

Stephen opened his mouth and stammered. He looked like he was the one facing death, and Tony had to stop himself from mentally tapping his foot, wanting Stephen to just get on with it.

Stephen nodded to himself, looked Tony straight in the eye, and said, “You’re not going to die, but you will have to make a sacrifice.”

It was like being drenched with ice-cold water and his heart dropped into his stomach. “Not Peter,” he said, putting a finger in Stephen’s face. “He doesn’t get to have Peter. I won’t—I can’t—“

“No!” Stephen shook his head. “I’m sorry. This is difficult to explain, and I’m going about it all wrong.” He looked outside the twisted view port, towards the ruins of Titan and the orange landscape outside. “And we’re running low on time.

“I am a master of the mystic arts,” he continued. “My order is tasked with protecting Earth from mystic threats. There have been times in the past where we’ve suffered great losses and had to create new ways to better defend the Earth. Over time, we discovered that one of the greatest ways to share our power was to bind our souls together.”

“There’s no such thing,” Tony said, a knee-jerk reaction. There had been a time when he knew without a doubt there was no such thing as a soul. Yesterday, he thought. Yesterday he’d known with absolute certainty. Today he knew different, but damn if it was still too new. He hadn’t had time to incorporate it into his worldview. He hadn’t even had time to consider that Stephen’s order had been around for centuries.

Stephen smiled. “You know that’s not true. There is such a thing as the soul.” His face seemed to twist a little and his eyes drifted to the floor. “The sorcerers of my order have created a way to combine power, for one sorcerer to transfer his power to another to defend against a greater threat. The deeper the bond, the greater the combined power. The strongest bond that will allow someone to wield the greatest power is the soul bond.

“Tony…I’m sorry,” Stephen said, still looking at the floor. “There is no other way. I searched over fourteen million timelines. I tried fighting, I tried running, I tried sacrificing myself, I tried so many other spells.” A sob tore from his throat. “I channeled energy from the Dark Dimension, something I swore to never do. I watched you die millions of times and I swear to you, this is the only way.”

“What?” Tony shouted, “What is the only way?” He paced back and forth across the bridge. “You’re not making any sense, and we’re on a deadline. So just tell me what I have to do and I’ll do it!”

Taking a deep breath, Stephen whispered, “Bind your soul with mine then, using our joint powers, we defeat Thanos.”

A weight lifted off his chest and Tony felt like he could breathe. He still barely understood what Stephen was saying, but he understood what wasn’t being said. He didn’t have to die today. Peter didn’t have to die today. He could go along with whatever ridiculous magic bullshit Stephen wanted to do and still get to go home. As long as there was life there was hope. 

God, his heart was stupid.

“Soul bond! Great!” he said, clapping his hands together. “Let’s do it.”

Stephen’s entire face shifted from the verge of tears into a deep frown. “Let’s do it?”

“Yeah. You said it’s the only way, right?”

Nodding, Stephen said, “Yes, but I didn’t expect—“

“No other way as in, really truly there is no other way we could possibly defeat him in fourteen million tries?” 

Another nod, this time with a look of complete disbelief.

“Right, then there’s no question. Whatever soul bonding is, let’s do it.”

Stephen winced with his entire body. “Yeah, you don’t understand what soul bonding is. Of course you don’t. I haven’t explained myself properly.”

Tony gave him his patented Tony Stark smile, the one he gave to reporters. He saw Stephen’s gaze fall to his lips, but ignored it and asked, sarcasm dialed up to eleven, “Is it the only way? Yes? Then let’s do it. I want to get Peter home before May skins me alive.”

Tony turned around, already walking towards the gaping hole in the ship. “And she’d do it too, she’s one hell of a—“

“It would bind our souls together, Tony!” Stephen shouted. “Completely and irrevocably tie our souls together for eternity. You would know what I’m feeling. Sorcerers who wrote reports of entering into this bond said it was like never being alone again. They described it like they could feel their soulmate here.” 

Slowly, Tony turned around. Stephen had his hand cupped right below his heart and his eyes were red.

“I would always be with you. You would know me and I would know you better than anyone else could ever know us. It would be very difficult for you to…connect deeply with anyone else. And when we die, our souls will be united in the afterlife. It’s a soul bond, Tony. That means forever. Not just until the battle is over, not until we get home, not until we die.” Stephen gestured with his hands as if to emphasize his point. Tony knew he shouldn’t but he allowed himself to be distracted by the scarring on his fingers. 

“It means eternity.”

He’d had dinner plans with Pepper, Tony thought. And he’d written up protocols for Friday to stop him from influencing MIT to guarantee Peter’s early acceptance. He’d upgraded his and Peter’s armor, silently dreading and also oscillating on the pavement when he thought about the big bad he knew was coming.

He’d barely given a thought to retiring Iron Man. He hadn’t thought past maybe rewriting the Accords and setting up a lasting peace. He had a will drawn up, but he’d had that since he was eighteen, even if it did get rewritten every few years.

He had absolutely no concept of forever. He especially couldn’t begin to fathom the idea of being tied to someone for eternity. Someone he barely knew. Someone who couldn’t know him. He felt like his brain was trying process the information he’d been given, but he was butting his head against a brick wall called forever.

Like a whisper in his ear, he knew Thanos was coming. They didn’t have time to waste on Tony having a break down over the idea of giving up his…what? Soul? God…

He didn’t understand this. Couldn’t begin to comprehend.

But Tony did understand sacrifice. He’d known he wouldn’t get out of this whole. Ever since Ultron, ever since seeing that vision of the world destroyed and his friends dead, he knew. 

The hero doesn’t get to go home. 

He nodded slowly. Met Stephen’s eyes. They looked sorrowful and full of regret. Red. 

“Okay,” Tony said.

Lifting an eyebrow, he started to say, “Tony—“

“No, I get it, Strange. Really.” He took a few steps backwards, needing a moment to himself. Just a few minutes to get himself together before he’d have to sacrifice his soul on the altar of the universe. He’d do it, he knew he would. He’d known the moment Stephen asked to speak to him that he’d do whatever was needed.

His life, he was prepared for. But he still couldn’t fathom the idea of having a soul, letting alone losing it to someone else.

“I always knew this would end up with me making the sacrifice play,” he said, then regretted it when Stephen looked liked he’d been slapped. He wanted to apologize but his head was spinning. 

“Just…just give me a minute,” he said, then walked out of the broken, twisted side of the ship. _Just a minute_ , he thought, _before I’m shackled to you for eternity._

He really hated magic.


	2. The Bonding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I added canon-disabled character to the tags because I realized it's going to be an issue that comes up for Stephen. Thanks to daylight savings turtle and the folks over at ironstrange discord for brainstorming with me. And again thanks to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta.

Stephen watched Tony walk away.

He watched as Tony walked past the wreckage of the ship, towards the remnants of whatever civilization had lived here millennia ago. He continued to watch as Peter bounded towards Tony, only to stop himself as he finally got a good look at Tony’s face. Stephen was a silent observer as Tony Stark wrestled with the burden of knowing he had just agreed to be soul bound to Stephen.

Stephen closed his eyes and shook his head. That thought wasn’t fair. Of course it was only natural for Tony to feel like being bound to him was a burden. It made complete sense that Tony wouldn’t want to be bound forever to a stranger, especially a stranger who’d butted heads with him every step of their acquaintance so far.

He’d feel the exact same way if he was in Tony’s position.

But he wasn’t in Tony’s position. Because unlike Tony Stark, Stephen Strange wasn’t about to be bound to a complete stranger. Stephen was about to be bound to a man he’d fought side by side with over fourteen million times. A man Stephen had seen die for Peter, die for him, die for a team of beings he’d only just met. He’d witnessed his wit and his charm, his bravery, and the absolute beauty of his soul over and over again.

So unlike Tony, Stephen knew the man he was being bound to very well. Better than he’d ever known any person in his life.

And he was completely in love with him.

The Cloak wiped at his face, then gave him a full body hug. For once Stephen accepted the comfort. Peter had found the courage to approach Tony, and Stephen watched them as they talked. Peter had his hand on Tony’s shoulder while Tony continued looking at the ruins of Titan.

If all of this weren’t completely awful it would be terribly romantic. Two men whisked away to a place beyond their own stars, forced together for the good of all the universe. 

Stephen shook the ridiculous thought out of his head. Nothing about any of this was good. Stephen was about to be soul bound to someone who didn’t know him, didn’t love him, and Tony was about to be chained to a virtual stranger. 

And in about half an hour he’d know exactly how Stephen felt about him.

“It’s a simple spell. The most powerful often are, but we’ll need a relic,” Stephen said to the Cloak. “Are you willing?”

The Cloak left his shoulders and floated in front of him, its collar twisting as it seemed to ponder his question. After a moment it lifted its edges to take Stephen’s shaking hands and its fabric shifted as though in question.

Frowning, Stephen asked, “Are _you_ doubting me now? Tony didn’t and he doesn’t even—“ 

A deep inhale helped Stephen keep it together. He pushed away the thought that Tony didn’t even know him but still trusted him, chalking it up to Tony’s heroic, self-sacrificing nature. He’d seen enough of that to last a lifetime. 

The Cloak shook its collar and embraced him. 

“Oh,” Stephen said and hugged back. “I’m all right. I’ll be fine. Or…well.” He watched as Tony hugged Peter, and then the pair began walking towards Stephen. “The universe will. And you’ll be with me, won’t you?”

The Cloak nodded again and then floated around to Stephen’s shoulders again, and he felt its agreement. 

“Then that’s all I need,” he said, giving the Cloak a gentle pet. The Cloak’s presence was absolutely necessary. Its faith was not, but Stephen sorely needed it. Thank the Vishanti the spell was so simple in its nature.

“Mr. Doctor Strange,” Peter said, bouncing past Tony to Stephen. “Mr. Stark said you have a plan for how to defeat Thanos and you have to get like…magic married?”

Stephen couldn’t help smile at Peter. Tony wasn’t the only one he’d gotten to know while viewing the future. “Something like that, yes.”

“I’m going to talk to Quill’s crew,” Tony said, patting Peter on the shoulder, walking past Stephen without looking at him. 

Both Stephen and Peter watched him go. Outwardly he looked fine, but Stephen was sure he had to be quietly panicking.

“Mr. Stark seems upset and…and I get why. I mean, you two barely know each other, but does this mean…you’ll be like family now right?”

Stephen’s heart somehow simultaneously warmed and broke a little more at Peter’s question. He had no idea what pretty lie Tony had told him, but he wasn’t going to say a word to wipe the hopeful look off Peter’s face.

“And I mean, yeah it’s kinda weird but maybe it could be a good thing? Like, I had a family once and—“ Peter’s eyes went wide as he realized what he’d just said. “I mean, I still do because May but—“

“Peter…”

“I mean, me and May are a family and I would never say anything different! We are, but sometimes I miss…it not being just the two of us? Like…I love her so much, but she’s just one person? Does that make sense?”

It made perfect sense to Stephen. The look of innocence and hope that practically shone from Peter’s face was like a punch to the gut. He thought maybe he’d be getting an additional father figure out of this mess. In reality Stephen didn’t see Tony wanting to even speak to him again after they returned to Earth. In all the fourteen million futures he saw, he’d never once abused the time stone to look into his own personal future. Still, he felt as though being completely ignored was a good guess as to how Tony would deal with Stephen in the future.

Something in Stephen’s chest twisted and he couldn’t help himself, pulling Peter to him and wrapping his arms around him. He was only barely able to stop the sob that was threatening to reveal far too much and lay too much burden on Peter.

“Doctor Strange?”

Right. Peter didn’t really know him. This time a tear did slip but he wiped it away before Peter could see his face.

He made to pull away, but Peter held on for a moment more.

“It’ll be okay,” Peter said, voice muffled by the Cloak.

Stephen smiled. “You’re right, Peter,” he said, finally letting him go. “Something gained, nothing lost. I’ll be sure to tell Tony.”

Peter grimaced and said, “Maybe not right now though. I think he’s trying to get his head wrapped around this. I just want him to know this doesn’t have to be a bad thing. I mean, it could be something really nice. You and him are so alike, you know?”

Stephen blinked and the Cloak nodded its collar. 

“See, the Cloak agrees,” Peter said, smiling. The Cloak nodded its collar faster and tickled Stephen’s cheeks then pointed at Peter.

Ah, Stephen thought, catching up to what the Cloak was trying to say. It was time to begin preparing. 

“So you approve of this bonding, Peter?” Stephen asked, taking Peter by the elbow and starting to walk towards Tony and Quill. “Will you stand with me?”

“Um…yeah! Wait. If I stand with you can I still stand with Mr. Stark?”

On the ship, while Tony had been fuming and impatient to hear what needed to be done, Stephen had mentally reviewed the particulars of the spell. Thankfully, Peter could serve for both Stephen and Tony. 

The soul bonding spell was a truly simple spell indeed. A battlefield spell, created out of desperate need. No need for a rare artifact, dusty old tome, or a dozen masters. The simplest spells were the most powerful. All they would need aside from the Cloak was three witnesses and someone who they loved to bless the bonding. The bond between sorcerers in war time often created the deepest bonds. That included Stephen, he realized.

“Yes, Peter, you can. And I would be honored if you stood with me and gave your blessing.”

“Oh my God, yes, of course I will! Mr. Stark! Mr. Doctor Strange says I can be your blessing!”

“You’ll be my pain in the ass is more like it, kid,” Tony said, a look of dread on his face except for the false smile he gave Peter. 

“Let me get this straight,” Quill said, holding up his hand as Stephen approached. “Somehow you guys getting magic married is somehow better than my plan?” Quill asked. “Dude,” he stage whispered to Stephen, “if you just want to hit that there’s better ways to go about it.”

“I do not think the wizard wants to hit Stark. I believe he wants to have sexual intercourse with him,” Drax said and set Stephen’s face on fire. 

“Ugh, Drax,” Quill said, “mental images, man. Seriously, though? This is how we defeat Thanos?”

“Hey, both of you cool it with the sex talk in front of the kid, okay?” Tony said, getting in between the Guardians and Peter.

While Tony lectured Quill and Drax, a curious Mantis approached Stephen. Though she was small and sweet, Stephen had seen a million futures where she was a force to be reckoned with. He’d seen her fearlessly hold Thanos in a psychic headlock, her will alone stopping him from killing them all. 

And it would have been enough. If only Stephen was ever quick enough to get to Quill on time.

Slowly, Mantis placed her hand on Stephen’s. She immediately started crying. 

“Mantis? What…” Quill came to her but seemed hesitant to touch her.

“What’s happening?” Tony asked, looking at Stephen with suspicion. 

“She’s an empath,” Stephen said simply.

To Tony’s credit—having absolutely no knowledge of a sixth sense at all—he seemed to understand what that meant. His face fell as he took in Mantis still holding Stephen’s scarred hand.

“No!” she cried. “It’s too much!”

“I know,” Stephen said, then briefly held her hand in his. “Peter, give me your hand, please.”

With nothing but pity for an empath of Mantis’ power, Stephen gently put her hand in Peter’s and watched as she almost instantly stopped crying. Her tears stopped and she smiled faintly. “Oh. You have so much love.”

“Um…yeah I guess?”

“Especially for your father,” she said, looking to Tony. 

Stephen watched as Tony’s eyebrows went sky-high.

“What?” Peter said, pulling his hand back. “No! I mean, Mr. Stark isn’t—I mean, yeah I definitely love him but as like a mentor/intern type of…I mean, love is a strong word. Respect! I respect him the way an intern respects an…Iron Man.”

Smirking, Tony finally looked at Stephen for the first time since they left the space ship. He looked away an instant later, almost as though the humor of Peter falling all over himself was enough to make him forget the situation they were in. 

Instead of brushing it off with a joke the way Stephen expected, Tony surprised him.

“I love you too, Pete.”

Maybe it was the fraught situation they were in or maybe it was the fact that he was terrified that led him to the admission. Either way, Stephen couldn’t help his smile as Peter beamed, then launched himself at Tony.

“Oh, wow,” Peter said, laughing.

“Yes, very nice,” Quill said. “Very touching. Come on, people! Thanos is coming and all we know is this guy,” he gestured to Stephen, “wants to see this guy’s junk,” he gestured to Tony, “and somehow that will save the universe.”

“Eww,” Peter said.

“Quill, I swear to God you talk like that in front of my kid one more time…”

“The soul bond has nothing to do with sex!” Stephen shouted over them. His face was red with shame even if what Quill said wasn’t true in the least. Stephen would never force someone into being with him, let alone manipulate someone into a soul bond with him. 

But what was true was that he was about to bond with the man that he loved. That much was very true. And even though it had nothing to do with the very real need for this bond, he still burned with humiliation.

“The soul bond is not getting ‘magic married.’ Nor does it have anything to do with sex,” he repeated. “Or love or romance or anything that you would associate with being married. It is a bond between two warriors. The soul bond is the entwining and bonding of two souls in order to share and give each other power. In this case, Tony and I will soul bond and I will give him my power. He will then use his nanoparticles and my magic to trap Thanos in a pocket dimension from which he will never be able to escape.”

There was silence for a moment and then all hell broke loose.

“Wait, this isn’t about love? What about being a family?”

“I’m going to use my nanoparticles to do what exactly?”

“Trap Thanos? What the hell use is trapping Thanos? We’re here to kill Thanos!”

“Thanos killed my wife and daughter! I will not rest until he is dead!”

“Enough!” Stephen shouted. “I’ve looked in fourteen million versions of this battle. We _must_ stop Thanos on Titan. If he gets past us there is no hope for the universe. If he gets to Earth he wins, full stop.

“I know it isn’t what you want to hear, but we cannot kill Thanos here. The best we can do is trap him. Please believe me when I say it will be enough. He will be entrapped in a magical tomb by a master of the mystic arts and the greatest creator the Earth has ever seen. With our combined power Thanos doesn’t stand a chance.

“All we need from you,” Stephen said, looking at Quill’s crew. “Is a good distraction while Tony does all the hard work.”

“Tony does all the what now?” Tony asked, hand raised in the air.

“But first…” Stephen said, taking a breath, “we need to actually create the soul bond.”

Quill gave him a flat look then turned to Tony. “Your wife is bitchy, dude.”

“Quill, you should not say such things about another man’s wife,” Drax said, looking over Stephen. “Even if they are true.”

“Both of you zip it. Lay off Strange,” Tony said.

Softly, Mantis approached Stephen and asked, “Will you be okay?”

Sighing, he used the Cloak as a buffer and lay a hand on hers. He was truly glad to have someone so kind and innocent as one of his witnesses. “Yes, I’ll be fine. Will you be okay?”

“Yes,” she said, turning her hand so her fingertips touched Stephen’s through the cloak. “I think so.”

“Good.” He turned to the Cloak and asked, “How about you? Are you ready?”

The Cloak nodded its agreement, leaving Stephen’s shoulders and floating in between him and Tony. 

“Tony,” he said, approaching him slowly. Tony looked at Stephen like he was bringing his death with him. He supposed in a way he was, but there was a note of fear in Tony’s eyes that hadn’t been there before. 

For a moment Stephen wondered what had caused this new fear to come over Tony, and then he realized. Damn Quill for forcing Stephen to have to say this.

“This was the nine millionth seven hundred and twentieth future,” Stephen said softly to Tony, so the others couldn’t hear.

“What?”

“After nine million futures where we lost I became desperate. This wasn’t my original idea. This wasn’t even my nine millionth idea. I didn’t want you to have to—“ he cut himself off as his throat seized for a moment. He looked down, but he could still feel Tony staring at him. “Even after I saw this as a path to victory I still looked at another five million futures. I wouldn’t have forced you into this, Tony, never…”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Tony said, and the fact that he was the one comforting Stephen nearly broke his heart. “I believe you. I believed you on the ship, too. Don’t listen to Quill. He’s an idiot with terrible facial hair. He can’t be in the club. We won’t let him in.”

Stephen smiled in spite of himself. Taking a deep and steady breath, he forced himself to look at Tony.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

“Ha. Um, yeah. Ready. Sure.” Tony gestured to himself. “Should I retract the suit? Gotta be honest, I’m not really feeling like I should given the absolute barren wasteland environment and the evil monster warlord on his way.”

“Just your hands, please.” Stephen turned to the Guardians. “Will the three of you stand as our witnesses?”

“Yes,” Mantis said promptly. 

“I will,” Drax said, suddenly very solemn. “You remind me of my own wife. She kept her beard in the same lovely way you keep yours.”

“Thank…you,” Stephen said, and Tony stifled a chuckle.

“I don’t have to do anything weird do I?” asked Quill.

“Quill, I swear to God,” Tony warned, his hands no longer covered by his gauntlets but still looked intimidating when formed into a fist. 

“No,” Stephen said, before it could go any further. “Nothing weird. All we need is three witnesses, a magical relic, a…family member for each of us, and the spell.” Stephen looked down at his hands. They were shaking more than usual.

“A very simple spell,” he said, almost to himself. A simple spell, a spell a student could perform. Necessity really was the mother of all invention.

“We both need a family member?” Tony asked.

Oh, hell. Damn Tony’s perspective nature. “Yes,” Stephen answered, hoping he’d drop it. “Peter, could you stand right here, please.” He pointed at a space in between himself and Tony, right in the middle where he could serve his dual purpose.

“Neither of us have any family here,” Tony said. “Unless you and Drax’s wife were a distant relation?”

“That would not surprise me,” Drax said. “My wife also had lovely eyes.”

“Dude, stop cruising on Stark’s wife,” Quill said.

“I am not in a ship. I cannot cruise on anyone.”

“All right!” Stephen said, trying to get them back on track. “The spell does not differentiate between the bonds of blood and the bonds of brothers-in-arms. Or in this case, a paternal bond. Peter will serve as family.”

There was an incredibly loud silence for a moment as everyone seemed to process what Stephen just said. Tony looked at him with narrow eyes and seemed to look past him. 

“But what about you?” he asked.

Shame reddened his cheeks, and Stephen didn’t exactly know why. There was no shame in admitting he’d come to love Peter like family. Tony had done the same, and Peter was so very easy to love. Stephen didn’t know why his face burned and his eyes dropped to the ground, but they did.

Maybe it was because he knew his affection wasn’t returned. That like Tony, Peter didn’t really know him and any kindness he was currently showing him was due to his sweet nature and not due to the bonds they had formed over millions of timelines.

“Peter will serve as family for me, too.”

Like a light had gone on in Tony’s head, Stephen saw him understand. _Please,_ he thought, _please let him understand. Just this one thing, so I don’t have to do this completely alone._

“Fourteen million, huh?” Tony asked softly.

“Huh?” Peter said, frowning.

Stephen exhaled. Somehow Tony understanding relieved some of the burden. Somehow he felt just a little less like an outsider, just a little less like some invader who was trying to force himself somewhere he didn’t belong. The square peg in the round hole of their little family. 

“Six hundred and five,” he confirmed.

Tony nodded and it felt just a little bit like forgiveness. 

The Cloak patted his hand and the moment faded, the reality of what they were about to do slamming down in between Stephen and Tony like an avalanche. 

“Right,” Stephen said. “It’s a very simple spell. It won’t take long to complete. I’ll begin to cast it, then I’ll ask if you consent to bond your soul to mine.” Tony nodded and closed his eyes like he were in pain. 

“Got it, Merlin.”

“Then I’ll consent to bind my soul to yours. I’ll ask Peter to give his blessing, then you ask him. The Cloak has agreed to oversee all of this as our relic. It will be our conduit as the bond passes through us to bind our souls together.

“It might feel a bit…odd, but not painful. Past masters have described it as suddenly having two hearts. Others said it was like returning home.” He thought back to the book he’d read about this bond, determined to read anything that might help benefit him on the battlefield, but uncertain he’d ever need this one. Suddenly, a remembered image from the book pulled at his heart and he said, “One described it as walking through tall grass after a rain with the best friend she’d ever have.” He drifted off and realized he maybe said too much.

“Well you and Stark can do all the hand holding and rain walking you want after we kill Thanos or trap him or whatever dumb wizard thing you have us doing,” Quill said.

“Right,” Stephen said. The weight on his chest was back brought along with a few friends. His body broke out into a light sweat, and he suddenly found breathing difficult. “Are you ready?” he again asked Tony.

“Yeah,” Tony said, focusing on Stephen’s face. “You okay, Doc?” He frowned and seemed to think for a moment. “Wait. Are _you_ okay with this soul bonding thing?”

Stephen smiled, then nodded. Even now, with Tony silently having an existential crisis of his own, he was still checking to make sure Stephen was all right. 

It was no wonder he fell in love with this man.

“I’m fine. And we need to begin.” 

His hands shook terribly as he begin to harness energy from the universe and cast the mandalas to begin the spell. He created the mandalas for ‘soul’ and for ‘bond’ and for ‘family’ and ‘power.’ The Cloak stretched itself out between the two of them and wrapped its edges around both their wrists. 

Stephen reached across the Cloak and gestured for Tony to take his hand. He was understandably nervous, and in his fear Tony almost slapped Stephen’s hand, taking it in a strong grip.

Stephen hissed in pain and the mandalas fizzled.

“Oh God, I’m sorry!” Tony said, releasing his hand instantly. “Sorry, Doc, I didn’t think. Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”

Stephen breathed through the pain and centered himself. Catching his breath, he examined the mandalas. Thank the Vishanti for sturdy battlefield magic.

“No, it’s fine,” he said, then gently slipped his hand into Tony’s. His fingers and palm were covered in calluses and Stephen had to stop himself from examining it further. “Let’s try this again. Anthony Edward Stark, do you consent to bind your soul to mine for the rest of eternity? Do you consent to loan me your power and do you promise to only use mine for the greater good of our reality?”

“I do. Yes,” Tony said. Stephen drew another mandala with his free hand, and it drifted until it rested in front of Tony. “Um, do you Stephen—“

“Vincent.”

“Do you Stephen Vincent Strange consent to bind your soul to mine for the rest of eternity? Do you consent to give me your power and will you never, ever use mine without my permission?”

The words weren’t exactly the same, but the spell did not require specific wording. The intent was clear enough, and Stephen’s heart broke a little at how adamant Tony was about using his own power without his consent. Stephen could only guess at what he’d endured until now.

Perhaps Stephen wouldn’t be able to offer anything even remotely resembling a happy life to Tony, but he could promise this. 

“I swear it, Tony,” he said, with as much warmth in his voice as possible.

Tony nodded and another mandala drifted to rest in front of Stephen. 

“Peter,” Stephen asked. “Will you give me your blessing?”

“Yes, of course!” he said, smiling. Stephen’s mandala flared brighter. He let go of a breath he hadn’t known he was holding. Of course it worked, he told himself. Peter is family.

“Peter,” Tony asked. “Will you give me your blessing?”

“Yes, Mr. Stark,” Peter said, and Tony’s mandala flared brighter as well. 

Stephen was shaking so hard he felt as though passing out was a very real possibility. This was about to happen. He tried to concentrate on the last, most important part of the ceremony, but for a moment all he could think was that he was about to be bonded to the love of his life and that that meant Tony would _know_.

There was nothing for it. He pushed the panic down for another time. He couldn’t do anything about it just now.

“Tony, give me your other hand.”

Both of Tony’s hands now in Stephen’s scarred, shaking ones, the Cloak draped itself over the both of them, softly twisting its fabric in a way that their hands were bound together. 

Now, Stephen closed his eyes and guided the magic to his and Tony’s souls. 

It felt like a soft breeze, friendly and warm. It went deep inside of him and held him close. In a moment his soul and Tony’s would temporarily leave their bodies and combine, then a small piece of each other would return to the other’s body.

Any moment now…

Stephen tried to stay in the moment of peace and calm, enjoy it while it lasted because it would probably be the last time he knew peace for a very long time. 

And yet. The masters’ recollections all said this part of the spell was very quick. Once the bond was consented to and the spell performed, their souls would be entwined…

Oh.

Slowly, very afraid of what he would see, Stephen opened his eyes. Tony was looking at him like a frightened animal. He looked absolutely terrified and Stephen completely understood why.

“Tony,” he said softly, “you have to consent to the spell.”

“I did,” he choked out. “I do. Magic me up, Merlin. Let’s do this,” he said, voice hoarse and almost like a whisper.

He knew it shouldn’t hurt. That Tony didn’t know Stephen like Stephen knew Tony. He repeated that mantra again and again and it didn’t seem to do any good. Stephen’s heart ached at the sight of the man he loved looking at him like was far more frightening than Thanos.

He didn’t know he could sink any lower.

“Tony,” Stephen said, “we have to do this. But I promise you, I will not abuse our bond. Never. I will never take something from you that you aren’t willing to give.” He paused then said, “I want to be your friend.”

It was such a small admission, but he felt as though he dropped a bomb between them.

Tony’s eyes went wide, but he didn’t look away.

“You have to let me in. You have to trust me if this is going to work.”

Still wild-eyed, Tony nodded. He extended his hands again and closed his eyes.

This time when Stephen pushed the spell outward and towards Tony it made the connection. He could sense the spell gently going inside Tony, bringing out a piece of his soul to mix with Stephen’s.

Suddenly it was as though the light of a hundred suns turned towards him, but he wasn’t burning. Everything was filled with the most precious light and his heart was full to bursting. 

He wasn’t alone. He could feel Tony with him. For a moment all he knew was that he wasn’t alone, that he would never be alone again. He could feel Tony’s bravery, his intelligence, his cunning. Could feel his sorrow and the dread feeling of loss at what they were doing. 

For a moment, Stephen knew who Tony Stark was, body and soul. Not in the way he had gotten to know him by fighting beside him for fourteen million futures. 

Their souls were mixing together. Stephen could barely tell where he ended and Tony began. They truly were compatible, and all he knew at that moment was true happiness. He and Tony together could defeat anyone and anything. They were unstoppable. The Invincible Iron Man and the great Master of the Mystic Arts. Nothing could even hope to stand against them.

The moment suddenly passed. The light faded and the feeling of absolute euphoria gradually ended. Stephen gasped and he felt someone—Quill?—holding him up. He could barely keep his feet under him. His head was spinning and his heart was…

Oh.

There. Behind his heart, there was Tony. Stephen could feel him, and it was unmistakably Tony. It somehow _felt_ like him. He felt as though his mouth ought to taste of engine oil and ridiculously expensive cologne and victory. 

Right behind his heart, as though Stephen could keep him safe if he hid him there. 

He shook his head a bit in an attempt to focus on Tony. When he opened his eyes, he almost had to dodge a blue butterfly. A dozen or so of the magical byproducts fluttered by as the spell ended. Peter and Mantis looked delighted and the others just looked confused.

Tony didn’t even notice them. He had his head between his knees, Peter trying to get Tony to sit up from where he had lost his footing and fallen to the ground.

Stephen could feel him. Tony was…frightened. And uncomfortable, resentful, and resigned. 

Stephen closed his eyes and turned away. No big surprise there. They’d deal with that tomorrow. For now, Thanos was coming and they had to go over how they were going to share…

_Shock_

_Disbelief_

_Sorrow_

Stephen fell to the ground as the emotion coming from Tony hit him like a pile of bricks. It was difficult to breathe, Tony’s turmoil was so strong.

And there was only one reason why Tony would suddenly be feeling such upset so strongly.

“Doc?” Tony gasped.

Stephen just sat there, unable to look at Tony, not willing to witness as his wasted love was realized. Instead he ignored everything and concentrated on the little blue butterfly that had just landed on his hand.


	3. Knowing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who commented or left kudos! I honestly didn't expect this kind of response for this little WIP. You've made me so happy. I'm currently about a chapter ahead in posting, so expect a new chapter every Saturday. For those of you who enjoy pining Stephen, you've come to the right place.

Of course, Stephen had known that his feelings for Tony would be revealed as soon as they bonded. Knowing that his unreturned, unwanted feelings would be known to Tony was much different than actually seeing it happen.

The silence stretched between them, but Stephen still felt Tony’s disbelief, his inner turmoil. It felt like Tony was trying to stay afloat in dark water, being battered on all sides by a tumultuous sea.

Fearing he knew exactly how this conversation would end, Stephen tried to delay it for as long as possible. It would only work for a few seconds, maybe a minute, but he couldn’t help himself.

Stephen had no desire to hear Tony’s kindness and pity as he explained that he could never love Stephen back. He’d been dreading this moment from the second he had returned from viewing the Time Stone’s futures. 

Tony knew Stephen was completely and utterly in love with him. And, being the good man he was, this was naturally very disturbing to Tony. Stephen lifted the butterfly that was on his finger to his face, examining its wings. And he was going to keep staring at it for at least the next thirty seconds. Just thirty seconds to allow himself to deny the awful truth: the soul bond would make it so he couldn’t hide his love from Tony, not anymore.

For all anyone else knew, this was the most interesting butterfly in the universe.

“I think the doc’s cracked,” said Quill.

“Nonsense, Quill,” said Drax. “He’s obviously still in one piece.”

“Shut. Up!” Tony said, and Stephen could feel his frustration, his disbelief. His sadness. Tony was drowning under the weight of Stephen’s wasted love, and Stephen regretted hurting him far more than hurting himself.

Of course Tony would now feel tremendous guilt over something that was not his fault. Stephen sighed and the butterfly fluttered away.

“Strange,” Tony said, and Peter helped him to walk over to where Stephen still sat on the ground. Cautiously, Tony laid a hand on Stephen’s shoulder, then the other on his chest, right under his heart.

Almost against his will, Stephen felt his body warm at Tony’s touch. Knowing that Tony was aware of the physical effect he was having on Stephen was the worst kind of humiliation.

“Look at me, please,” Tony whispered.

Even without the bond, Stephen could have heard every question just in the look Tony was giving him. _Why didn’t you tell me? How is this possible? Are you insane? How? What am I supposed to do with this? What do you expect me to do with this?_

Stephen chuckled darkly. “Fourteen million, six hundred and five. Is it really all that shocking?”

“Yes,” Tony said plainly. “Very, very shocking. I don’t—I have no idea what I’m supposed—“

“What?” Peter asked, his voice trembling, clearly scared out of his mind. “Are you guys okay? What just happened?”

“We’re fine, Peter,” Stephen said. “It worked.” Determined to use Peter’s question as the distraction he needed, Stephen got to his feet. He steadied himself and asked Tony politely, “May I demonstrate?”

Tony nodded, confused, and Stephen closed his eyes. He concentrated on the little spark he felt right behind his heart, then conjured his mandalas. Almost feeling like a child being caught doing something they ought not to do, Stephen allowed himself to feel Tony. Warmth enveloped him and his aching heart felt a sudden joy that wrapped around him. He wasn’t alone, and in that moment Stephen felt whole. 

He pushed it aside. If he took too much it would only drain Tony, so Stephen concentrated on only channeling enough to be sure of the power sharing. Like taking water from a fathomless sea, Stephen allowed himself to harness just a small amount of Tony’s power, grateful that his experience in the mystic arts helped him. With almost surgical focus, he used the bond to blast a hole in the side of a mountain. 

Tony wavered for just a second, so quick that no one else—not even Tony himself—noticed. 

“Holy shit!” Quill shouted. “Now that’s how we’re going to defeat Thanos.”

“It’s not,” Stephen said. “But it sure does look cool.” Definitely cool enough to distract Tony for a moment. 

“Wait. No, stop,” Tony put his hands in a T position. “None of this makes any sense. That’s not _my_ power. That’s the suit’s power, the Iron Man’s power. It doesn’t come from me.”

“You know you’re the only person on Earth who still calls it The Iron Man,” Stephen said. “To everyone else you simply are Iron Man. The power is yours, Tony.”

“Okay, yes. I am Iron Man, but the power is in the suit. If you take the suit, you take the power.”

Peter’s face contorted and Stephen almost matched him. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Stephen said. “Of course this is your power. Whose else would it be?”

“But it’s not mine! It doesn’t come from me!”

“But it does come from you, Tony.” Stephen smiled at the wave of disbelief and the small wisp of hope he felt grow in Tony’s chest. Tony wanted to believe Stephen but feared he was wrong. “You’re the greatest creator the world has ever known. This power didn’t just come from your mind. It came from your soul. And now you’re going to use it to defeat Thanos.” 

“Woo! Yay Iron Dad and Doctor Dad!” Peter cheered. “Hey, are these butterfly guys going to help us stop Thanos? Cause they’re really cool.”

“What? Butterflies?” Tony said, only now just seeing the byproduct of Stephen’s magic.

“Oh, thank you,” Stephen said, idly extending a finger for a passing butterfly to perch. “It’s just a byproduct of my magic. All magic comes with a consequence, and this spell was very strong but very benign. Hence, the physical manifestation. They’re harmless.”

“They’re pretty,” Mantis said.

“Peter, stop, don’t touch that, it’s a magical byproduct!” Tony said, swatting away a butterfly. “Go wash your hands!”

“Where?” Peter asked with a shrug.

“They’re _harmless_ , Tony,” Stephen said, softly laughing.

“This doesn’t happen every time you cast a spell,” Tony said, still swatting. “You didn’t save us from the crash and make a pony.”

“Oh my God, can I have a magic pony?” Peter asked.

Ignoring him, Stephen said, “No, but I do know a sorcerer who conjures lilies when she practices certain spells. Most spells have normal consequences, the same thing you’d expect if you physically exerted yourself: hydrate, eat something, get eight hours of sleep.”

Tony looked at Stephen’s shaking hands and asked, “You gonna be alright if Quill doesn’t have magic sports drinks on his ship?”

Feeling his face heat, Stephen said, “Yeah, that’s not—that’s not due to fatigue.” He tried not to hide his hands behind his back.

“Right…” Tony said softly, still looking at Stephen’s hands. Stephen gave up his internal struggle and allowed the Cloak to hide them, then cleared his throat when he felt Tony’s embarrassment at the indelicate question.

“It’s fine,” Stephen said.

Looking between the two of them, shifting his feet and sensing the shift in tone, Peter suddenly broke the awkward silence. “Ooh, what would a magic sports drink be called? Presto-peach-oh! No, wait. Bippity boppity berry!"

“You are such a nerd,” Tony said, his voice fond. “Oh! Alaka-razz!”

Stephen only half-listened as Tony and Peter bantered. Thanos was approaching. As much as Stephen hated the idea of being alone with Tony, they needed to practice channeling Stephen’s magic.

“Tony,” he finally said, interrupting him as Tony was trying to shoo away the half-dozen or so butterflies that had landed on him while he was listening to Peter. “He’s coming. We should take as long as we can to practice.”

“Right,” Tony said, and Stephen could feel his dread like ice water down his back. Dread at even speaking to Stephen.

Wincing, Tony rubbed the space just below his heart. Shaking his head, he then nodded and walked past Stephen to a clearing a little away from Quill’s ship. Stephen followed Tony slowly, hesitant to be alone with him.

“We should start with very basic channeling,” Stephen said, almost grateful for the distraction of Thanos. “This is only coming naturally to me because I’m familiar with magic but since this is dealing with your own essence—“

“How?” Tony interrupted, swiftly walking towards Stephen and only stopping when he was a foot away.

Stephen abruptly took a step back. He knew what Tony meant of course. It was the giant elephant between them, impossible to ignore now they were both feeling it. How could Stephen possibly be in love with him, how could his feelings run as deep as they did? 

Stephen shuffled backwards and looked away, towards the ruins. “By concentrating on me, on the piece of me that’s within you, you can now—“

“No,” Tony said, and stepped closer again. “You know what I mean. How? You don’t even know me. And I’m…” Tony placed a hand over his chest and finally retreated a few steps. 

Tony clutched his chest again, right under his heart. Stephen’s heart broke just a little bit more, and that couldn’t have been helping Tony either.

“Stop that!” Tony shouted. “Just…stop. I feel like I can’t catch my breath.”

“ _How the hell do you think I feel_ ,” Stephen thought. “I’m sorry,” he said instead.

“Don’t be… God, you don’t have anything to be sorry for. It’s just that it’s been about five minutes and I don’t know how much more of this… _ache_ I can take.”

Nodding, Stephen closed his eyes and allowed himself to slip into a meditative state. This he could do. Even when he was mourning the Ancient One and Mordo, even when his hands were throbbing and on fire, he could always meditate. Finding balance would help both him and Tony.

He allowed himself to concentrate on nothing but the magic in the universe for a few moments, then surfaced.

Tony was looking straight at him. His eyes were shining. 

“You don’t even know me,” Tony said softly.

Stephen couldn’t stop the tears that came to his eyes and, for the first time since he’d looked into fourteen million futures, he didn't want to. Tony deserved to know the full truth.

“I know everything about you,” Stephen gasped and he felt the first tear fall. “I’ve spent years fighting by your side. I watched you die for me a million times. I died for you in twice that. I’ve seen the very best parts of you. I know exactly who you are, Tony.”

_And I love you_

He didn’t say it out loud, but he watched Tony’s face transform into disbelief and awe. It was the most confusing moment for Stephen, watching Tony be baffled that someone could love him as much as Stephen did.

Stephen cleared his throat and allowed the Cloak to wipe his face. “I don’t expect anything from you, you have to understand. This is my burden and I will deal with it on my own. I’m not trying to put anything on you.”

Tony laughed bitterly. “You say that, Doc, and yet there’s this big ugly hole in the middle of my chest. What do I do with this?”

“Nothing,” Stephen said, closing his eyes and trying to get ahold of himself. The Cloak once again wiped his face and gave him a more subtle hug. “You don’t have to do anything about it. Like I said, it’s my burden. I’ll…learn to live with it.”

“I don’t think _you_ understand, Strange,” Tony shouted, pointing a finger at Stephen. “Listen, I know about not being able to breathe, all right? I know all about it. I had part of my lungs removed to put in the arc reactor. I got through PTSD and panic attacks where I seriously thought my heart was about to shut down. 

“But that is _nothing_ on this! Your pain feels like poison to me!”

Stephen shuddered and lowered his head at what he knew was an honest admission. Of course his feelings were hurting the man he loved. Of course they were…

“No!” Tony shouted. “Stop! Seriously, whatever shame spiral you’re going down right now I need you to stop it and talk to me because I can’t take another second of this!” He approached Stephen slowly and reached out to take his hand.

“Look can we just…just for a minute, please,” Tony drifted off and gently folded Stephen’s hand in his. “Everything feels terrible, but I know you’re a good man. I might be…someday when I grow up maybe,” Tony said, closing his eyes. “Hey, you said you wanted to be my friend right?” He bit his lip and looked at Stephen again. “Well, that sounds great to me, Doc. I need all the friends I can get. Right now I got Pepper, Rhodey, and the kid. That’s it. That is the sum total of all people I trust in this world. Having you be a friend sounds really nice right now.” Tony looked at him expectantly. “Does that help at all?”

Yes, he told himself. Stephen only had two friends in the entire world and Wong was always trying to throw him out of his own library. The second was a sentient piece of fabric that didn’t know when to mind its own business. 

And friendship was not second place to a romantic relationship. Both had their places. Both had merit. Stephen could be happy with just Tony’s friendship. 

Stephen was usually much better at lying to himself.

Tony sighed. “Okay, this isn’t working. Peter is good at this. What would Peter do? Ah!” Tony took his hand away, thankfully, and clapped. “Let’s play the glad game, Pollyanna.”

“The what?”

“It’ll make you feel better. I’ll tell you something about you that makes me happy. Then you can say the same. It’ll make us both feel better and maybe this black hole in my chest will stop sucking my will to live.”

When he put it that way, Stephen thought he should probably go along with whatever Tony wanted.  
“I’ll start,” Tony said, then looked at him very seriously. “I really like how nice you’re being to Peter. I know a lot changed when you came out of your green floaty trace thingie, but you were kind of dismissive of him before. You’ve completely changed how you talk to him and that makes me very happy.” He took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly. “Huh. That was easier than I thought it would be.”

“I—“ Stephen shuddered. He didn’t know if he could play this game or what good it would do. There were too many things he could say he loved about Tony. He could just start to ramble off a list. But Tony’s admission of how he liked that Stephen cared for Peter did make him feel just a little bit better. And they both needed to be free from distraction, to be alert and ready for Thanos. 

“You’re being very forthcoming,” Stephen said.

“Yeah, well…” Tony kicked a rock and concentrated on the ruins in the distance. “Something tells me it would be pretty pointless to try to lie to you.”

Kicking the same rock back to Tony, Stephen considered this but said nothing. Lies of omission were hardly lies, he reasoned.

“Doc?”

“I…appreciate your kindness,” Stephen said without thinking. “And your gentleness. No one’s ever really gentle with me,” Stephen said. He wanted to kick himself. That had been _too_ forthcoming.

Tony frowned. “You mean like with your hands?”

“No,” Stephen said. “I mean…in general.”

Tony’s smile faded. “Yeah, I think I can see that. You give off this prickly bastard demeanor and everyone falls for it. I sure as hell did. But your soul is just…”

Tony trailed off and stared into Stephen’s eyes, like he was seeing him for the first time. Slowly, he lifted a hand towards Stephen, then dropped it.

“Soft,” Tony finally said. “Everything about you feels very soft,” Tony said softly. “Not that anyone could possibly know that. I mean, I only know that because I can literally feel your little butterfly self behind my heart and damn that’s not a sentence I ever thought I’d say.

“What I am trying to say is, I like you, Doc. And yeah, we can be friends. Can that please be enough right now? Because I can’t go another minute like this, and I really don’t want you to either. Not when I know it’s me that’s causing all this misery.”

“It’s not though,” Stephen sighed. “It’s really not.”

“It sure feels that way though,” Tony said.

Seeing the circular route this conversation was about to take, Stephen nodded. This was far more than he was expecting to get from Tony. Determined to move on, he gestured to the open expanse of wasteland he’d chosen. 

“If you were literally any other person I’d say it would be a challenge to teach you how to channel my power and mix it with your own in the amount of time we have. Since you’re Tony Stark I imagine this isn’t going to take long at all,” Stephen said.

“Good,” Tony said, looking over to where Peter was talking with Mantis. “Something tells me we don’t exactly have a long time to practice.”

“No,” Stephen said, “we don’t. Right. Now, I need you to close your eyes and concentrate on feeling me inside you.”

Tony lifted an eyebrow.

Stephen scoffed. “Concentrate on the bond. Not the physical or emotional connection you’ve been feeling. You need to go deeper. Close your eyes and try to find the piece of me that’s with you.”

Tony muttered something about the weirdest shit he’d ever been involved with but closed his eyes. Stephen waited for a few moments and watched as Tony frowned then grimaced before Stephen finally felt a tug.

“There!” he shouted. “Now, don’t do anything with it. Just feel it. Become familiar with it.”

“What exactly is this that I’m feeling? It’s…weird.”

Conceding the fact, Stephen shrugged, but Tony didn’t see him. “That’s completely fair. Magic isn’t something you’ve ever encountered before.”

“Not at all true, Doc. But your magic feels…much different than anything I’ve felt before.”

Making a mental note to ask what types of magic Tony had interacted with, Stephen said, “Describe it. It might help with the next step.”

“It feels… God, this sounds so corny but it feels big. Bottomless. Like I can’t see the end of it.”

Stephen nodded. “That might be one of two things. It could be that you’re feeling the loop that connects our souls. It doesn’t really end with either of us. It just continues until it’s back to where it started.”

“Or?”

“I channel my power from the universe. There are three types of energies that a sorcerer can harness and universal energy is what the sorcerers of my order use the most. We draw power from our dimension in order to create spells.

“Quite simply, what you might be feeling is…the universe.”

Tony sighed. “Every minute with you is an adventure, Doc.”

The Cloak shook in what passed as a chuckle. “Oh, hush,” Stephen said to it. He watched Tony for another moment. “Do you feel like you have a good grip on it?”

“Not…really,” Tony said, and his face was twisted in concentration. “I can feel it but it feels like trying to grip water.”

“I think I can help,” Stephen said. Closing his eyes, he reached out within himself to feel Tony. “Don’t be alarmed if this feels weird. It’s new to me too.” He reached behind his heart, to the place where Tony hid. He concentrated on the warmth, the feeling of being whole that he’d felt when he’d channeled power from the bond earlier. He imagined a hand reaching out to touch Tony, to guide him to the place where their souls connected.

He pushed out and then softly, gently…touched.

“Oh,” breathed Tony.

“Hmm,” Stephen hummed. It was like touching the physical manifestation of joy and completeness, and he knew Tony was feeling the same way.

_Euphoria_

_Delight_

_Joy_

“This is a battlefield spell?” Tony asked, and Stephen could feel his disbelief.

“Yes,” Stephen said, his soft touch still guiding Tony in learning the nature of the bond between them. He felt Tony’s wonder as he explored his connection to Stephen. It should have felt intrusive, but all Stephen could focus on was Tony’s child-like glee.

It was nothing so concrete as seeing Stephen’s memories or thoughts. Instead, Tony was wandering through Stephen’s heart: knowing who he was even if he wasn’t learning exactly how he came to be.

“It just feels so…”

“Yes,” Stephen agreed, but steered the conversation away from just how _good_ the bond between them felt. Now, he guided Tony to his power and the channel that Tony would use to access it. “In a moment you’ll understand exactly how dangerous this spell will be to our enemies. You will literally be channeling all of my power and adding it to your own.”

“Yeah, I’m starting to get it,” Tony said breathlessly. “Holy shit.”

“All right, now conjure your gauntlet back.”

“Ha, conjure. Silly wizard.” Tony called his gauntlets back as Stephen asked. “Now what?”

“Now concentrate on the bond, concentrate on the connection…then shoot.”

Opening his eyes, Stephen watched as glowing red mandalas encircled Tony’s wrists, and he fired a blast at the remnants of the old structure that stood in ruins.

With that one blast the entire building collapsed to the ground.

So did Stephen.

“Fuck me!” Tony shouted, and in his distraction Stephen was able to steady himself and stand back up. 

“Mr. Stark, did you do that?” Peter asked, running up to them.

“Yeah…no rockets, no unibeam. Just a repulsor blast. The wizard was right. It worked.”

“The wizard is standing right here, thanks.”

Tony frowned when he saw Stephen. “You okay over there, Doc?”

Ah, the wonders of this spell never ceased, Stephen thought. Feeling one another’s emotions but not physical pain. It was no wonder it was created that way, considering its purpose.

“Peachy,” he said, steadying himself. 

Really he didn’t expect anything different. Even if they had weeks for Tony to learn how to control the amount of power he took from Stephen, the fight with Thanos would still require Tony to take all he possibly could. 

“It looks like you get the idea of how to channel my power. Now we just need to practice using that power to reinforce your nanoparticles.”

“And you’re absolutely sure that’s going to work?”

“Yes,” Stephen said resolutely. “As long as magic exists it will hold him.”

Peter raised his hand. “How long will magic exist?”

Stephen rolled his eyes. “Until the end of forever, Peter.”

Peter looked like he was pondering that for a moment, then said, “So, like, a really long time then?”

Sighing, Stephen ran a hand through his hair. Seeing a good moment for the both of them to get their breath back, Stephen walked over to Mantis, who was sitting alone.

“I’m afraid you have a very important part to play in all this,” Stephen said to her.

Orange dust blew past the both of them, and Stephen wished he could take it back. She twisted her fingers in her lap and swallowed her fear.

“I am ready,” she finally said. “Are you?”

Stephen sighed. “No. But we’re all going to survive this. That’s more than I had hoped for.”

She nodded. “Are you okay? You fell. No one else was watching.”

Rubbing the edges of the Cloak between his fingers, Stephen considered how much to tell her. “The fight won’t kill me. I looked that far ahead and saw I was able to finish the job. It’s dangerous to look too much into your own future, but I did see myself and all of us leave Titan. But it’s not going to be pleasant…for any of us.”

“He doesn’t know?” Mantis asked.

Stephen shook his head. “We don’t have time for that argument. This is my burden. I hate to keep this from him, and under other circumstances I wouldn’t but… ”

“Thanos is coming,” she said, nodding.

“He’s almost here.” As though saying it strengthened him, Stephen stood up and shook off the orange dust from the Cloak.

It tickled Mantis’ face and she beamed.

“It loves you,” she said happily.

“I know,” Stephen said, and petted the Cloak’s collar gently.

“What will you do?” she asked.

Looking over towards the others, Stephen mentally reviewed his plan and what he needed to tell all the players. “I’m going to give Quill, Drax, and Peter their orders and then I’m going to help Tony magically reinforce his nanoparticles.”

“No,” she said shaking her head. “I mean, after? What will you do?”

 _”Oh,”_ thought Stephen. He hadn’t even considered after. After his battle with Dormammu he’d learned how very important it was to never tamper with time. And he’d just looked into their universe’s fourteen million futures, but never once did he look into his own, except to see that he survived.

He’d never truly considered what he and Tony would do after this, aside from the vague idea that Tony would completely ignore him and continue living his own life. But after seeing Tony’s reaction to the soul bond, that might be easier said for him than done. 

_Friends_ , they’d said. Being Tony’s friend while he was desperately in love with him seemed far more difficult than the upcoming battle with Thanos.

“I don’t know,” Stephen admitted. “But I’m sure I’ll think of something.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed the reason for Stephen's butterflies a bit. I realize in Infinity War he transfigures the black hole Thanos throws at him into butterflies, but I just thought...wouldn't it be cuter if that was his magical "consequence." If you've read the 2015 run of Doctor Strange the idea of all magic having a price is kind of adapted from that. Only this price is sweet because Stephen is sweet.
> 
> Also, I plan on borrowing bits of pieces of 616 for Stephen's character, but you do not have to read 616 to enjoy or follow along with this fic.


	4. Destiny Fulfilled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for your kind and enthusiastic comments. Every single one made me smile. This chapter was stressful but also a lot of fun to write. Thank you to all the folks at ironstrange discord. Much gratitude and love to glaucous_atlanticus and silent_serendipity for the excellent beta.

Hidden behind a boulder, Tony rubbed at the dull ache right beneath his heart. Stephen was crouched a few dozen feet in front of him, he and Peter keeping a keen eye on Mantis where she stood waiting for Thanos.

Tony took a deep breath and tried to concentrate. It felt like Stephen finally had his head in the game, unlike a few minutes ago when it seemed like he was drowning in dark water and taking Tony along with him.

But as much as they were both trying to focus on what was about to happen, Tony could still feel that flutter behind his heart. He didn’t know how magic worked, whether or not magic-compost was symbolic, but Tony felt Stephen’s little residue butterflies were completely in character. For all that the guy was tall, dark, and bitchy, Stephen’s soul felt light and airy where it hid behind his heart. Soft and wounded and full of an all-encompassing, absolute love like Tony had never felt before.

_For him_

And along with love came the absolute soul-draining knowledge that the man Stephen loved— _Tony_ —didn’t love him back.

And Tony had absolutely no idea how to deal with that.

When he’d finally consented to the bonding and he’d felt Stephen for the first time, all he’d known was joy. A euphoric flood of emotions had washed over him, and it was like Stephen had overwhelmed his senses. It was like feeling whole, like his broken parts had been mended. If it hadn’t been impossible, Tony would have sworn he could taste and smell tea and old books and antiseptic. Damn, what he’d give to go back to that moment. It had been too short-lived and the pain of Stephen’s heartache too overwhelming to ignore.

Of course, when he’d first surfaced after Stephen had cast his bonding spell, he hadn’t known exactly what he was feeling. Tony had experienced different kinds of pain in his life—he was the continental breakfast of pain—but not like this. All he knew was that he was feeling a deep, painful _longing_ and that it didn’t belong to him. 

But it _did_.

If Tony hadn’t been feeling it in his own soul, he would never have believed the depth of Stephen’s love for him. At least not until he’d realized what viewing fourteen million futures really meant.

He wondered if maybe Stephen hated magic sometimes too.

The silence on Titan stretched thin, and Tony had to stop himself from pacing back and forth. He watched Mantis, trying to remind himself (and really it wasn’t like it was hard) of how completely defenseless she was, how quickly this could go bad. 

Even if he did trust Stephen.

He flinched and rubbed his chest again for all the good it did.

And God, he wasn’t used to this. This feeling like he wasn’t alone, like there was somewhere there with him, even now. Someone he barely knew, someone he hadn’t been sure about at first…

Someone who loved him.

At least now Stephen was mostly feeling anticipation and fear instead of crippling heartache. It was a lot easier to breathe. And wasn’t it an odd thing, Tony thought, that terror and anxiety were something Tony could handle but heartache was not.

Damn, what an ache.

Softly, he felt a little tug in his chest, an inquisitive poke from Stephen, then took his eyes off Mantis for half a second to see Stephen giving him a look with a raised eyebrow.

 _”Yeah, yeah,”_ Tony thought, giving Stephen a little salute. _”Get your head back in the game, Stark._ ”

The red and orange dust of Titan scattered, and a deep blue portal that looked nothing like Stephen’s opened. Tony swallowed his own fear and then Stephen’s. 

Crouching lower behind his boulder, Tony kept his eyes on Mantis as a large purple humanoid emerged. Knowing this was Thanos had very little to do with how a chill ran down Tony’s spine and the little hairs on his arm shot up. This creature held no fear as he surveyed the devastation in front of him and slowly approached Mantis.

Seeing her standing there, shaking with fear, Tony once again called Stephen’s plan into question. She was standing close to where Peter and Stephen were hiding, but it seemed as though she was all alone. Thanos certainly seemed to think she was.

Fourteen million futures, Tony reminded himself. And whether it made sense or not, Tony trusted Stephen.

Stephen who was a few dozen feet away, who had promised no harm would come to Peter. Stephen, who was also currently safely hidden somewhere behind Tony’s heart.

 

As Thanos walked slowly towards Mantis, Tony felt fear stab him like a hot knife. He’d known what they were facing, he’d known about the Infinity Stones, known Thanos was a genocidal maniac, known he might die.

But seeing the stones in a golden glove on that monster’s hand made Tony’s heart skip a beat. He’d known it when Wong and Stephen had explained the Infinity Stones to him in New York, and he really knew it when Stephen and the Time Stone had been kidnapped to outer space.

Watching the light shine off the stones on Thanos’ glove felt like the truth being shoved down Tony’s throat. This was it. This is the moment he’d been dreading for years. This is what he’d been prepared for, what he’d tried to prepare the Avengers for.

And not one of his friends was here to stand with him now.

All he had was Quill’s motley crew, a bright-eyed kid who had no right to be there, and—

Oh God, what was Stephen to him now?

The tug was back, but this time it was accompanied by a feeling of calm. Stephen reached out like he had before when they’d been training, but instead of guiding Tony to see how to channel power through the bond, Stephen was trying to comfort him.

It didn’t really help much, because one, there was _a lot_ to panic over. And B, Tony still wasn’t used to feeling another person where there should only be him. But Tony took what Stephen gave him and started calling his nanoparticles.

Fifty feet away, Thanos approached Mantis.

“Where are your friends, little one?” Thanos asked Mantis, slowly crouching in front of her, and if Tony didn’t know he was a murderous warlord hell-bent on genocide he would have thought he actually cared about the answer.

It didn’t look like Mantis was having a hard time conveying that she was terrified, her shoulders hunched and a look of terror on her face. She slowly started retreating, never turning away from Thanos. She stepped backwards, approaching Stephen and Peter while Thanos kept a steady pace.

“Where is the Maw?” Thanos asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, then visibly shivered when Thanos approached her and took a knee.

“You’re a terrible liar. Much like my daughter.” Tony shivered as Thanos put his large, purple hand on Mantis’ head. “But you aren’t a warrior…like she was.”

A sob tore out of Mantis as Thanos touched her forehead and Tony heard an angry and bewildered, “Was?” from Quill who was out of sight.

“Damn,” whispered Tony.

“Now, Peter!” shouted Stephen, and thick red cords erupted from Stephen’s hands and wrapped around Thanos’ wrist. Peter’s unbreakable webs shot around the other wrist, and Tony found himself mentally reviewing the web’s chemical formula, telling himself it would hold when he saw it was wrapped around Thanos’ glove.

Thanos roared when he realized he was trapped by Stephen and Peter, but before he could use the stones Tony rushed down to them, momentarily shielding Peter with his body.

It was the work of a few seconds to close his eyes, find his connection with Stephen, and pull. Frantically, he yanked the magic that bonded them together as hard as he could. It was nothing like the gentle, searching practice they had. Terrified as he saw Thanos aim his gloved fist at Peter, Tony grabbed everything he could and _pushed_.

Crimson red mandalas flared to life and Tony screamed as the bond flared, as he felt it roar and bellow. It felt like a warrior’s cry, like a call to battle, like the screams of a thousand soldiers as they charged the enemy.

_Right. Battlefield spell._

Relentless, feeling the blood coursing through his veins and his heart pounding, Tony pushed his reinforced nanoparticles onto Thanos. He vaguely realized he couldn’t see Stephen anymore and that Mantis had hidden behind some rocks. “ _Good_ ,” he thought, not stopping, never stopping as he saw Thanos’ gloved hand now completely covered by the nanoparticles.

“Move, Peter!” he shouted, not bothering to check that he was obeyed, his eyes focused solely on Thanos.

With Stephen and Peter now out of the way, Thanos was free to begin to try and chip away at the nanoparticles that were slowly encasing his lower body. He roared and swung a fist and managed to make a large dent in the nano casing and Tony’s eyes went wide.

“Where’s Gamora?” Tony vaguely heard Quill shout as he flew into view. Barely sparing him a thought, Tony continued with his mission. 

“Hey, dick face!” Quill shouted and Tony heard a blaster firing, keeping Thanos occupied while Tony continued to encase him in the nanoparticles. “Where’s Gamora?”

“The hardest tasks require the strongest wills. I did what needed to be done,” Thanos grunted. If Tony couldn’t see him for the monster he really was, he would’ve thought he heard regret in his voice.

“Bullshit!” screamed Quill.

“Gamora is dead!” Mantis shouted. “He killed her!”

“Quill!” Tony screamed, not letting up on the nano casing. “I’ve almost got this, man. I need you to hold it together!”

Thanos shouted and again tried to chip away at the nano casing while Quill’s face twisted in agony. 

“Why?” he screamed, and flew to punch Thanos on the chin, right where Tony had been aiming. “You son of a bitch! Why?”

“Thanos!” Drax yelled from behind the rock where he was supposed to be backup. “Today is the day you die!” he bellowed then began to run after Thanos with his swords. 

Tony hadn’t quite gotten the nanoparticles down to Thanos’ hips yet, so he was able to swing around to get a really good hit in. Drax fell to the ground without having drawn so much as a drop of blood.

“Quill, keep it together, buddy!”

Quill fired his blaster and _punched_ Thanos in the face, for all the good that would do. 

Closing his eyes, Tony pushed deeper, tried to go faster to try and seal Thanos in his billion-year jail cell. The bond was singing its battle cry to him, and Tony felt invincible. Stephen was right. Their enemies didn’t stand a chance against them. He pulled and pulled from Stephen and pushed the nanoparticles out into the world and onto Thanos. He heard the sounds of Thanos and Quill fighting and forced his eyes open just in time to see Thanos look directly at him for the first time.

“Stark.”

Tony’s heart dropped to his feet. “You know me?”

“I do. You aren’t the only one cursed with knowledge.”

Thinking of Peter and Pepper and Rhodey and…even Stephen, Tony said, “My only curse is _you_.” 

Thanos gave what must have passed as a sadistic little smile. Tony watched in horror as the Power Stone glowed purple within the nano casing, all the work Tony had done threatened. 

In his shock, Tony faltered. He lost his grip on Stephen, and the nano particles stopped flowing. Tony cursed himself and was about to start again, but in his panic he couldn’t concentrate hard enough.

Just when he was about to lose hope, a ship came crashing down from the sky. A furious blue woman rushed out of the wreckage, swinging two swords. 

“Father!” She wielded her double blades, and leaped to attack his head. 

The Reality Stone glowed red, and Tony held his breath. Dread and failure crept into his heart as he watched their plan fall apart, years of anticipating, putting Peter in danger, marrying a man he barely knew all coming to nothing…

When an orange portal slipped in between the blue woman and Thanos, cleanly severing his forearm.

Thanos bellowed in pain and Tony saw his chance.

Closing his eyes again, he reached for the bond, reached for Stephen and finished the job. The bond sang between them. A victory cry, a shout of jubilation, their destiny fulfilled.

Slowly, opening his eyes, Tony smiled through his sweat and tears as he saw Thanos firmly encased in his nanoparticles. His face was twisted in a snarl of agony and defeat. The glove and all the stones had landed on the ground next to him.

Tony quickly kicked it away from him and took a deep breath.

They’d done it. The years of fear and dread were over. Relief swept over him like a wave, and he put his head between his knees, then laughed.

He could feel the shock coming on, his breathing becoming shallow and his laughter broken by sobs. He couldn’t help himself. The feeling of relief was too much.

Slowly coming back to himself, Tony realized he’d been so shocked he hadn’t heard the screaming and his name being called. Taking deep breaths, Tony concentrated on what was happening in front of him.

“No!” Quill shouted at the blue woman. “She’s not dead! He’s lying!”

“Thanos took Gamora to Vormir. He came here with the Soul Stone…” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “But she didn’t.”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter shouted, running to Tony and grabbing him frantically around the waist. “Mr. Stark, please, I don’t know what to do. He told me not to get you, that you had trap Thanos, that it was the only way,” Peter said, clinging to Tony. “I’m sorry—I’m sorry, I didn’t know what to do so I listened to him and now—“

Fear washed over Tony like a flood. He stood frozen, just staring at Peter for a moment, then gently—far more gently than a moment ago—reached out to Stephen through their bond.

He felt a single, weak flutter.

Then he ran.

Stephen lay in a heap behind a rock, his cape prodding at him, but it got no response.

Tony went to his knees. “Doc?” he said, gathering Stephen into his arms. “Doc, come on, you’re scaring the kid.”

“Mr. Stark, I’m sorry,” Peter cried. “You just started hitting Thanos and Mr. Doctor Strange fell and he grabbed me and told me I couldn’t stop you, you had to keep going, and I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…”

“No,” Tony whispered. “No, no, no, you stupid wizard.” Panicking, he slapped Stephen’s face, trying to wake him up. “Strange!” he shouted. “No, you don’t get to do this. You don’t get to—“

 _”You don’t get to leave me,”_ Tony thought. Because even though they barely knew each other and even if Tony had been forced into an eternal marriage he hadn’t signed up for, Tony knew Stephen’s heart. A good man like Stephen, someone who loved Tony, someone Tony hadn’t lied to when he’d said he’d like to be friends, couldn’t just leave now. He still wasn’t used to feeling Stephen behind his heart, but that didn’t mean he wanted him to leave. Not like this.

Tony’s heart really was stupid.

Shaking himself, Tony examined Stephen, ran his hands over his body. There was nothing physically wrong with him. Tony had been concentrating solely on Thanos during the battle, and he hadn’t had a chance to strike out at either Stephen or Peter. Aside from the marks Squidward had left, there wasn’t a scratch on him.

 _”All magic has a consequence_ ,” Stephen had said. Fear like fell over Tony like a shroud as he realized what that meant.

“Come on, Doc. Stephen. I don’t have any Bippity Bobbity Berry for you. Wake up.”

Peter was crying and repeating ‘I’m sorry’ over and over and Tony had no idea what to do. He checked Stephen’s pulse and found it weak and slow.

In his blind panic, a thought occurred to him. If he could take power from Stephen, maybe he could give some back? He retracted his gauntlets and grabbed Stephen’s hand. 

Gently, like touching the wings of a butterfly, Tony closed his eyes and searched for the little flutter that still hid behind his heart.

He reached out, just as desperately as he had a moment ago, but nowhere near as violently. Softly, just like Stephen himself, Tony found Stephen and held tight.

He had no idea what he was doing or if it was even possible, but hey it was practically Newtonian right? And maybe magic was just science they didn’t understand yet. If he could take, he could also give. So Tony concentrated on his own power, on the strength of the Iron Man, and _pushed_.

At first nothing happened, then Tony felt something like a trickle flowing through the bond that connected his soul to Stephen’s. He felt a little dizzy but shook it off.

Slowly, he felt Stephen strengthen, accepting what Tony was giving. The dimmed light behind his heart started to brighten.

Suddenly Tony was jolted as Stephen gasped for breath. He felt his confusion, his bewilderment…

But not his pain.

“Oh, you son of a bitch,” Tony whispered.

“Oh my God, Mr. Doctor,” Peter said, and wrapped his arms around the both of them. “Oh my God, I was so scared and I knew you said not to stop Mr. Stark from trapping Thanos, but then you collapsed and you seemed like you were really hurt and I didn’t know what to do but—“

“It’s all right, Peter,” Stephen whispered. “Tony did it.”

“You mean we did it,” Tony said. “You absolute dick.”

Closing his eyes again, Stephen weakly whispered, “I’m sorry.”

_Regret_

_Sorrow_

_Hopelessness_

Tony shook his head and bit his lip, finding it bloodied. “Don’t. You don’t get to do that. This was…beyond not okay, Doc.”

Stephen seemed to pass out again, but his cape caught his head and cradled him. 

Swallowing his anger, Tony felt for Stephen’s pulse. His cape wasn’t holding him steady enough, so Tony grabbed Stephen’s head and felt his pulse, stronger and more steady this time.

Relieved, Tony exhaled. The fear that had gripped him the moment he’d heard Peter cry out slowly started to abate, but Tony didn’t take his hands off Stephen.

He knew he should. His cape friend had a proper grip on him, and Stephen seemed like he was out of the danger zone. There was no reason for Tony to still be holding Stephen, but as he took a good look at Stephen’s face, he realized it was the first time he’d gotten a really good look.

He’d been trying his best to avoid looking at him after Stephen had told him they had to get magic married. And after they’d bonded or whatever, when Tony realized that Stephen loved him, Stephen had avoided looking at him out of the sorrow and shame of knowing his love wasn’t returned.

Tony hated that. Tony hated knowing he was causing someone so much pain, even if Stephen said it wasn’t his fault. Maybe it wasn’t, but someone—a friend—was still hurting because of Tony.

So Tony allowed himself to take a good look at Stephen, his…magic husband? Soul mate? Butterfly boyfriend?

_Oh, God…_

Whatever he was, Tony took a good look. 

Passed out from magic fatigue, face punctured and scratched from space torture, cuddled by a sentient cape, Stephen wasn’t looking his best. His neck was kind of scrawny, his face extremely narrow and pale, and his hair was doing…a thing. 

All in all, he was a little weird-looking.

But Tony was suddenly overwhelmed by the knowledge that this man who had just saved the universe, this man who had broken his own heart, this man who was just as damaged as Tony, was now safely hidden behind his heart.

_And he was Tony’s._

That softness that only Tony knew, that strength that he exuded, and the self-sacrificing Tony begrudgingly admitted they shared was all his.

His grief and resentment at being soul married to an absolute stranger faded a bit. Not completely, Tony knew, but it did fade. In its place was a fierce desire to protect this idiot at all costs.

Maybe it was because he wasn’t a complete stranger anymore. As much as he might not want to admit it, Tony now knew Stephen in a way no one else would ever know him. And Stephen now knew Tony.

He’d had friendships based on far less.

Maybe it wasn’t the love that Stephen had for him, but maybe it was something? Because there was no way Tony could live his life if all he felt all day was a little ball of sorrow in his chest.

Tony watched Stephen breathe and placed his hand on his own chest. Then, he tried to reconcile the truth.

There was no way he could leave Stephen now. And Stephen couldn’t leave him. 

“Mr. Stark…” Peter said softly. “Is he going to be okay?”

Abruptly, Tony realized he was still holding Stephen’s face in his hands.

“M’fine,” Stephen slurred. “Have to get up…finish the job.”

Slowly, Stephen opened his eyes. Tony allowed himself to look into them, not seeing past them like before, but to truly _see_.

Still groggy, Stephen closed his eyes again and nuzzled into Tony’s hand.

Tony felt his ears and neck warm and nope. Battlefield adrenaline and fainting heroes be damned, Tony was not confusing and hurting Stephen by getting turned on by a simple physical interaction. He took a deep breath and got his body under control.

Instead, he focused on the protective feeling that was growing in his chest. That and the anger that was coming back now that Stephen was waking up again.

“Say, Doc?”

“Hmm?” Stephen hummed, then his eyes snapped all the way open and he pushed himself away from Tony’s hand. “Sorry,” he said. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean—“

“It’s okay, Stephen. Really.”

Vaguely, Tony realized Peter was watching their interaction, smiling through his tears. He preferred that to the terror that had been there earlier, even if Peter was completely misunderstanding what was happening.

“Won’t happen again,” Stephen said, then finally saw the Thanos-statue standing a few dozen feet away from them. “You did it.”

“ _We_ did it, you asshole,” Tony said, and the anger that had been forgotten while he’d been looking at Stephen crashed over him. “That was a real shit thing to do.”

“I’m sorry,” Stephen said, getting to his feet. “We didn’t have time to practice reinforcing your nanoparticles and argue about the power drain before Thanos got here.”

Tony kicked the dusty ground. “Bullshit. Do you have any idea how it felt? Any idea what I thought when Peter came running up to me, crying hysterically—“

“I wasn’t crying,” said Peter, still softly crying.

“And then I tried to feel you, and it was like you were barely there. And you know, that’s really messed up. We’ve been bonded or married or whatever you even call it for about an hour now and it felt _wrong_ to not feel you like a…a spark…a…a light. Something strong that hides right here,” he said, gesturing to his heart. “I just got you, Doc, and you almost took yourself away from me.”

Stephen’s mouth just dropped open.

Tony had to struggle not to do the same. Examining what he’d just said, he realized it was true.

Peter made an excited squeal.

“Did you think I was lying?” Tony asked, and his anger was really kicking up speed now. “When I said that I wanted to be friends, when I said I cared about how you felt? _Did_ you think I was lying? Or placating you? Because I wasn’t. I’ve had bad friends before.”

He paced a moment, then turned around and put a finger in Stephen’s face. 

“Actually, except for about three people in my entire life, all I’ve ever had was shitty friends. And then here you come, and we need each other to save the universe and you know that wasn’t anything I was ever planning on, but hey! You say you want to be my friend. Well, what does that mean to you, Doc? Does being your friend mean I have to wait for you to lie to me?”

_Shame_

_Regret_

_Sorrow_

Tony winced and grabbed at his own chest. Damn it! “Stop that! Just stop! I have every right to be upset with you right now.”

“I’m sorry,” Stephen said, breathing deeply. “You’re right. And…I am sorry, Tony. I swear, if we’d had enough time to explain what would happen I would have. Truly, I would have. I didn’t want to lie to you. I _know_ you. I didn’t want to hurt you. Please, I’m sorry.”

It was hard to stay angry at Stephen when Tony could actually feel his very genuine regret, his sorrow not at having been caught in a lie, but at hurting Tony in the first place.

“I’m sorry, too,” Tony said, and regretted what he was about to say but needed to say it. “Because now I don’t know if I can trust you.”

Looking regretful, Stephen lowered his head and dropped his shoulders. He nodded, then turned away from Tony to go to Thanos.

“Umm, Mr. Stark,” Peter said. “If you’re mad at Doctor Strange, then you should be mad at me too. I knew what we were doing wasn’t right. I knew he was hurting himself…or letting you hurt him, and I didn’t do anything.”

Tony sighed. “That’s different, kid. He’s an adult, you’re a teenager.”

“But I know right from wrong. I wear the suit. I just helped take down a big evil alien.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“Forgive him? He really seems like he cares you about, Mr. Stark. And he’s really nice. And he’s kinda…family now. Please, can’t you forgive him?”

Tony thought that over for a moment and in the corner of his eye he saw orange lights. Stephen was hovering, still lacking the strength to stand and letting his cape hold him up, and began to cast his spells towards Thanos’ frozen form.

“Strange!” Tony shouted and ran over. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? I almost drained you completely! You almost died!” 

_I just got you and you want to take yourself away from me._

The thought washed over Tony like a flood, nearing drowning his anger. 

“I have to finish the job, Tony,” Stephen said weakly. “It’s not enough to just trap him. We have to magically seal him in a pocket dimension where he can never escape. It’s the only way to stop him completely.”

Nodding slowly, Tony approached Stephen. Stephen who was looking at him like Tony was about to destroy him. Stephen, who looked so tired and world-weary. Who knew Tony better than anyone else and loved him anyway.

He walked up to Stephen, sweaty and exhausted and done, and said, “Do it then.” The roller coaster of stupid feelings he’d just been through plus the exhaustion of the day (days?) and actually fighting an alien warlord suddenly caught up with him. His anger at Stephen might be the only thing holding him together.

Peter walked up to Stephen, put a hand on his shoulder over the cape, and said, “You’re all clear, kid. Now let’s blow this thing so we can go home.”

Tony scoffed, Stephen smiled weakly, and their eyes met. Tony’s anger faded just a bit at the lost look on Stephen’s face.

Clearing his throat, Tony said, “You heard the kid. Plus we have to deal with Quill and his crew. Something…something bad happened, I think.”

Stephen nodded and his cape lifted him higher. Peter and Tony watched as his hands made an intricate series of motions and a portal opened to total darkness.

Grabbing Peter and thrusting him behind him, Tony watched as Stephen maneuvered the portal so it encompassed Thanos, then closed. It took all of about five seconds.

Tony nearly went to his knees in relief. 

It worked. Damn it, it all worked. It happened exactly like Stephen had said it would. Thanos was defeated, trapped in another dimension, and everyone had lived.

And all Tony’d had to give up was his soul.

Breathing through his teeth, Tony tried to push the thought away. It wasn’t fair, he knew, but he was still so angry. It was like a roaring wave threatening to consume him, and Tony struggled to control it. Everything he had pushed aside because of the threat of Thanos was suddenly trying to overwhelm him.

“Mr. Stark?”

 _”Right,”_ Tony thought. He didn’t have time to be angry right now. Later, when they were back on Earth—and how the hell were they going to get back to Earth—Tony could let himself be angry. Right now it, was a luxury he didn’t have.

For now, he pulled himself together, finally allowing himself to check on Stephen.

He was floating where Tony had last seen him, right where Thanos had stood. His body was silhouetted by the setting sun, and the light cast shadows on his face that highlighted his battle wounds. And he was looking at Tony like it was the last time he would ever see him again. Tragically and full of fear. 

He could feel Stephen’s fear.

In a heartbeat, Tony felt his anger recede. It was replaced by something else, something warm, and Tony felt a little like he was seeing Stephen for the first time.

Had his eyes always been that blue?

He blinked and shook himself. Byronic posing aside, Stephen did make a pretty picture. Especially with…

Wait.

He put his finger in his mouth, then in the air. Yeah, he thought so.

“Doc, is your cape flapping dramatically all by itself?”

Stephen frowned and looked behind him.

“Cause there’s no wind right now. And your cape is…” He gestured to where the cape was flapping majestically behind Stephen, looking like a movie-director’s dream shot.

Tony couldn’t help himself. He laughed and said, “Come on, Heathcliff,” then gestured for Stephen to come down. “You can haunt the moors later. We need to see to Quill.”

The cape slowly lowered Stephen to the ground, and Tony purposefully waited for him. 

“Tony…”

“I know,” Tony said. “Really, I know. And I get it, but we gotta talk. I mean, even without you doing what you did…” He sighed and met Stephen’s eyes. “We got a lot to talk about.”

Stephen nodded, then wavered, his last reserves of strength seeming to finally run out. Tony saw his eyes roll back in his head and reached out instinctually to catch him. He expected his cape to beat him to it, but was surprised to see it unresponsive, instead allowing Tony to catch Stephen in his arms.

“Oh my God!” Peter shouted. “Is he okay?”

Tony felt for his pulse again, felt it strong and steady, then reached out to Stephen through their bond. Relief washed over him as he felt Stephen, weaker than he had been before the confrontation with Thanos but nowhere near as weak as a moment ago.

“He’s fine. Just exhausted.”

Tony cradled Stephen in his arms and couldn’t help as his anger faded and that rush of protectiveness returned. He sighed and shifted Stephen until he looked more comfortable.

“Did I say Heathcliff? I meant Cathy. Come on, wizard, let’s see if there’s a fainting couch on Quill’s ship.”

Tony walked into the setting sun, towards Quill’s party, the man he was somewhat-married to in his arms. Peter at his…

“Peter?”

“Sorry, Mr. Stark!” Peter shouted, and Tony could tell he’d been watching the both of them walk away. “I couldn’t help it. This is just…” he waved his hand between Tony and Stephen, “really romantic.”

Tony sighed. He took a good look at himself, then down at Stephen, his cape still flapping in the nonexistent wind. “Yeah, I guess it is,” he said, his heart heavy. “A real Hollywood ending.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cloak was a lot of fun to write for this chapter. He's a good wing-cloak.


	5. The Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has commented on the story. The response has been so lovely, and I'm grateful to you all. I'm having so much fun writing this story, and I'm so pleased other people like it too. Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta. And thanks to the folks at the ironstrange discord for letting me ask really random questions.

It turned out that Quill’s ship had a pretty decently stocked med kit, even if half the stuff was completely unfamiliar to Tony. 

Quill was red-eyed as he directed Tony to a cot where he could place the still-sleeping Stephen. Tony placed him on the cot, then ditched the golden death glove to a corner. It should have felt weird, having the most powerful weapon in the galaxy lying on the floor by his feet, but he’d seen stranger things.

“Here,” Quill said, his hands shaking as he fumbled with a small container that looked like it held medicine that should be administered intravenously. “Give him this. He’ll probably be fine.”

Tony tilted it from side to side, trying to find the needle for a minute before Quill rolled his eyes and grabbed it from him.

“Um, Quill maybe you shouldn’t—“ Tony started, then winced as Quill went ahead and gave Stephen a little stab in the neck with whatever it was, shaking hands be damned.

“He’ll be fine,” Quill repeated. “Listen, um…what you did on Titan. No one else could’ve done that. I know I might have talked a lot of crap about you and the wizard, but you guys really stepped up.” Clearing his throat, Quill looked at a far wall and it seemed to Tony like the words were being pulled from him. “I wasn’t thinking clearly cause um… Well, I wasn’t thinking. If it had been left to me, we’d all be dead right now. So…thank you.”

Nodding, Tony said, “You’re welcome.” He didn’t know what else to say while faced with Quill’s grief. Sure, he’d experienced grief of his own, but he didn’t know Quill. He had no idea what Quill might want to hear, what comfort he might want or accept. Faced with a very serious and uncertain situation, Tony did what he usually did. 

He threw money at it.

“Thanks for the ride home, and for helping with Strange. When we get there, we should see about getting you to Missouri. I can help track down any family or friends you might want to see, set you up somewhere nice. Maybe it might help, seeing family?”

It looked like he might have said the wrong thing because Quill choked up a bit and said, “Nah. My family’s in that cockpit. Well…most of them.”

Tony nodded. “Okay. Let me know.”

Turning towards the door to their little med bay, Quill stopped just outside. “Oh, and uhh, I’ll wait till he’s awake and feeling better, but I’ll be back to square up with the doc,” he said without turning back.

Tony didn’t have a second to contemplate what Quill had just said before he heard a voice behind him.

“Tony?” 

Tony jerked back towards Stephen just as the door closed on Quill. He quickly pulled up a stool and then put a hand on Stephen’s chest to stop him from sitting up too quickly.

“Easy, Doc. You pulled too many rabbits out of the hat.” Tony watched as Stephen seemed to struggle to take in his surroundings. “We left Titan. We sealed Thanos in his billion-year jail cell, and you sent him to the Phantom Zone. We left about an hour ago on Quill’s ship. We’re headed back to Earth. We did it. We won.”

Like he’d pushed a button, Stephen immediately fell back on the not soft-looking at all pillow on his cot. Tony felt his relief. He breathed deeply a few times, then Tony watched as a small smile turned Stephen’s lips up and laugh lines appeared around his eyes.

If Tony didn’t have his anger simmering on an emotional back burner, he might have admitted Stephen was pretty when he smiled.

Instead he crossed his arms, letting that anger and disappointment make its way to the forefront now that he knew Stephen was going to be okay.

Wincing, the smile left Stephen’s face. “Oh,” he said, turning back to Tony.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “ _Oh._ ”

Maybe it was the bond or maybe it was the look on Tony’s face, but Stephen seemed to realize exactly how much trouble he was in. He slowly began to sit up, and Tony helped adjust his flat, ugly pillow accordingly.

“Don’t look surprised,” Tony said, when Stephen looked confused by what Tony viewed as a gesture of common decency. “I want you to be comfortable while I yell at you.”

“Tony, there was no other—“

“Yeah, there was no other way. I get it.” He cupped his hands over his mouth, then slid them through his hair. “You’ve said that about a dozen times in the past few hours. There was no other way to defeat Thanos than for us to get married—“

“Bonded.”

Tony threw up his hands. “Whatever you want to call it, there was no other way. Fine. I get that. Clearly it worked. We won. Day saved, when’s the parade, and can I be the grand marshal? But you said you wanted us to be friends. And I trusted you.” 

Tony closed his eyes and tried to swallow some of his anger. It wasn’t fair to aim it all towards Stephen. His anger was justified, he knew, but it also came from a lifetime of betrayals and back-stabbing. Some of them from people he’d trusted with his life. 

Some of them having happened very recently.

“You tell me this is permanent,” Tony said, “You tell me this goes beyond death even. And okay, that’s a lot to swallow on its own, and let’s not even think about that right now cause _I’m_ not!” Tony’s hand clutched the space where he felt Stephen, right under his heart. “No, right now I want to focus on how the hell I can trust you after what you just pulled.”

“There was—“

“I swear to God!” Tony yelled, standing up from his stool so abruptly it skidded across the room. “I swear to **God** , Strange, if you say there was no other way one more time—“

“There was no time!” Stephen shouted, and his strength looked like it was finally returning in full. “Tony, be honest with yourself. What would you have done if I had told you using the bond in the manner you had to use it would nearly drain me of my lifeforce?”

Tony’s face twisted. “ _Lifeforce?_ ”

“You would have hesitated!” Stephen shouted, pushing on. “Or you would have stopped in a critical moment to check on me. You wouldn’t have pushed with all our combined strength, which is exactly what was necessary.”

“Bullshit! If you had taken a moment to explain it to me, I would’ve understood! Hell, I agreed to marry you—“

“Bond.”

“ _Marry you_ with a two-minute explanation! Don’t sit there and tell me I wouldn’t have understood.”

Like the fight had just been knocked out of him, Stephen deflated, and said, “That’s nowhere near the same, and you know it.”

“No, I don’t,” Tony said, pacing the small room. “I don’t know that. There’s no difference.”

“There’s a great deal of difference, Tony. One action—draining me—is directly taking and potentially harming another person.” Stephen eyes went soft as he said, “The other action—bonding with me—is an act of sacrifice on your part.”

Like leaving a warm home for a frigid night, Tony felt the truth of what Stephen said wash over him. Closing his eyes, he turned away and dug his nails into his palm.

Stephen sounded so small and sad as he said, “And we both know you have no problem with self-sacrifice.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Fair has nothing to do with it.”

_Guilt_

_Sorrow_

_Regret_

Tony shook off the instinct to stop the conversation, to stop Stephen from saying hurtful things about himself. Only knowing that Stephen was a part of him now kept Tony from calling it all okay, from saying they were straight like he had on the donut ship when he’d been anything but.

“You still should have told me.”

He turned back towards Stephen just in time to see him nod. “And I would have…if we’d had more time.”

“Damn it, Doc!"

“Tell me you wouldn’t have done the same thing.”

“What?”

“Look me in the eye, and lie to me,” Stephen said, and there was a note of desperation in his voice. “Tell me you wouldn’t have done the exact same thing if you’d been in my position. You would have. We both know you would have. You’re forgetting I _know_ you, Tony. I watched you sacrifice yourself for me, for Peter so many times. Damn it, there were a few times we made it back to Earth, and you sacrificed yourself for _Rogers_. Don’t try to tell me you don’t understand.

“All I can say is I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, and I’ll try my best to never keep something like that from you again.”

Tony was about to respond when the door to the room slammed open.

“Doctor Strange!” Peter shouted, smiling and bounding forward to sit next to Stephen on his cot. “You look much better, sir.” 

“Thank you. I feel much better,” Stephen said, put his hand on Peter’s shoulder. Peter beamed.

He’d retracted his suit, so he was back to wearing his standard t-shirt and jeans. That’s where the resemblance to the normal Peter stopped. His eyes were still puffy and red, his entire body looking a little shaky. For the first time, Tony wondered just how long had the fight with Thanos lasted. How long had Peter been standing over Stephen’s fading body, thinking he was dying?

He’d concentrated so much on Stephen and Thanos that he hadn’t noticed.

Tony finally retracted his own suit, resigning himself to putting his conversation with Stephen on pause for Peter’s sake.

“How’s Quill’s crew handling things, kid?” he asked.

Peter clutched something in his hands and looked down. “They’re all really sad. That lady they were looking for—“

“Gamora,” said Stephen.

“Yeah, Gamora. Thanos killed her to get one of the stones.”

“The Soul Stone,” Stephen said, his voice flat. “He killed his own daughter so he could kill half the universe.”

Peter nodded and played with whatever was in his hands.

A part of him wanted Peter to go so he could continue his talk with Stephen. Another—probably better, he admitted to himself—part of him didn’t want to let Peter out of his sight until the red left his eyes.

“Well, he’s dead now,” Tony said. 

“Well—“ Stephen drawled out.

“Dead now,” Tony said.

“Except not really because—“

“Dead. Now.” 

Peter shifted around on the cot, visibly uncomfortable. 

“Or as good as,” Tony said, and he suddenly needed to move around. The room was too small. “I can’t describe the relief I felt… I knew this was coming. Years ago, I’d had a…vision. A witch kind of messed with my head.” Stephen perked up at that, but Tony continued. “Ever since then I’ve been trying to get ready, but it all blew up in my face.

“Luckily I had you two with me,” Tony said softly, only now realizing exactly how lucky he’d been. Especially after the destruction of the Avengers.

The three of them were quiet for a moment, and Tony didn’t know how to break the awkward silence. He felt better having said all that, like a small weight was lifted from his chest. Sure, his old team had left him, but maybe he had a new one. Maybe he’d try to say it again later when his head was on straight, and this argument with Stephen wasn’t weighing so heavily on him. 

For now, he closed his eyes and let himself feel all the pain, loss, and relief that came from victory.

Finally, Peter cleared his throat. “So, um, I figured it might be a little while before we get back to Earth, so I asked Mr. Quill if they had any games we could play.” Peter showed off the deck of cards in his hand and a single die. “He kinda didn’t really give me any instructions, but he did give me these.”

Peter flashed some of the cards in the deck. All Tony really wanted to do was resolve this mess with Stephen, maybe stop feeling like his entire life was being upended for five minutes. But the haunted look he saw in Peter’s eye told him Peter shouldn’t be left alone.

“Okay, Pete. Let’s see what we got.”

“Um, okay. Looks like we have some villain cards. Here’s a really big blue alien? Laufey from Jotunheim. Sounds familiar. Hero cards, too! Here’s a master dwarf who’s also a smith.”

“That’s me, my character,” Tony said, swiftly taking the card. The dwarf on the card was named Eitri and he looked badass. If Tony was going to be forced to play a game, he at least wanted to be cool.

“Okay. Um, there’s an elven princess,” Peter said, looking at the card. “Oh, she’s really pretty in kind of a weird way.”

“That’s you, Doc,” Tony said, taking the card from Peter and handing it to Stephen. “Weirdly Pretty Princess Doctor Strange.”

Stephen blushed and Peter smiled and ducked his head, then Tony realized what he’d just said.

Tony cleared his throat and looked at the other character cards. “No one likes false modesty, Doc. Come on, Peter. Who’re you gonna be?”

“Um…hang on a second,” he said, flipping through the cards. “There’s not anything I really—Oh! An Asgardian! This guy looks like Thor!” he said happily, showing off the card that really did look like Thor. Right down to the big hammer.

“Okay, Peter is Thor, Stephen is the Pretty Princess, I’m the master dwarf smith. Now what’s the objective of the game?”

“Oh, uhhh,” Peter mumbled, looking through the cards. “I have no idea.” His voice was still shaking, and Tony knew he was right to stall his talk with Stephen. “I think we might need to play Calvinball.”

Tony laughed and Stephen looked confused. “What’s Calvinball?” he asked.

“We basically make up the rules as we go along,” Tony said. “It’s an old joke from that comic strip, Calvin and Hobbes.”

“Ah,” Stephen said, leaning back into his gross, probably vermin-ridden pillow. “I was never one for comics.”

“Really? Cause you dress like you’re at Comic Con.”

The cape smacked Tony’s hand and Stephen glared. 

“Okay, we’re playing Elves and Giants: Calvinball Edition,” Peter said. "Street rules. Rule one: line up all the villains in a row.”

They lined up Laufey the Frost Giant, Hela of Helheim, and Malekith of Svartalfheim in a row.

“Basic game rules apply: put down your character card, then draw a weapon card, then an action card. Roll the die to see if your action hits. You only get one action per turn. I’m the DM so I’ll be laying down the action cards for the villains.”

“This isn’t Dungeons and—“

“Oooh, I drew a broadsword!” Tony shouted. “I’m gonna use my broadsword on the devil in the green dress.”

Peter laughed, and Tony thought maybe his hands were shaking a little less. “Okay, roll the die to see if it hits.”

Tony rolled.

“It hits! Mr. Stark damages Hela!”

“Okay, my turn,” Stephen said. “I’m going to try to damage Laufey.”

“Draw a card.”

Stephen picks up the card that says ‘poison spell.’

“Oh! I’m going to poison his food.”

“Okay,” Peter said, “roll the die.”

Tony watched carefully as Stephen’s trembling hands rolled the die and tried to remember if his current level of shaking was normal for him.

“It hits! Doctor Strange damages Laufey! Okay, now it’s my turn. I love Calvinball. I’m gonna hit Malekith, the dark elf.”

“Get ‘em, Peter.”

“You got this, Peter.”

“I draw a…blaster? Against a dark elf?”

“Hey, it’s Calvinball rules, Peter,” Tony said. “You can do anything you want with it.”

Peter thought about it for a minute then said, “I throw the blaster at his head and run.”

Stephen and Tony both laughed, and Tony allowed himself to enjoy the brief respite in what he knew would be an awkward, painful road home. 

“Okay, now it’s their turn.” Peter said. “Hela goes first, aims for Mr. Stark. She draws…enchantment.”

“Good luck, lady. They didn’t call me a playboy for nothing.”

“…and it misses!”

“Told ya.”

“Okay, now Laufey is going after Doctor Strange—“

“Pretty Princess Doctor Strange,” Tony reminded him.

“Yeah…I’m not gonna say that.”

“Leave Peter alone, Tony.”

“He draws…an ice blade. Oh, that’s scary.” He flipped the card so he and Stephen could see a large, deadly looking piece of ice. “And it hits!”

“What?” Stephen said. Tony frowned. Peter hadn’t rolled.

“Doctor Strange is wounded.” Peter cupped the die to his chest for a moment longer than was necessary. Just a second really, but Tony saw it. He watched Peter bite his lip, then shake his cupped hand.

“Okay, now Malekith is…also targeting Doctor Strange. With a poisoned dagger.”

“What? Why?” Tony asked. “The last guy already targeted him.”

“Unfair!” Stephen said, and the smile was starting to slip from his face. 

“I don’t know,” Peter said, shrugging. “It’s weird. But let’s see what happens.”

Peter threw the die and nodded. “It hits! Doctor Strange isn’t looking too good.”

Peter wasn’t making eye contact with either of them now. He was concentrating solely on the deck of cards and the die in his hand. Tony thought maybe his shoulders had started shaking again. 

“It’s your turn now, Mr. Stark. You only have one action per turn. If you want, you can move yourself to protect Doctor Strange and take the next hit for him. Or you can let him get hit again and that’s it. He’s dead.”

Silence slammed down the three of them. Tony wondered exactly how thick Quill’s doors were and how much had Peter heard.

But then again, he reminded himself, this argument had been going on since Titan.

He had a feeling about how the rest of this game was going to go.

“How do we know he’s the one who’s going to get hit again?” Tony asked.

“Oh, he’s going to get hit again,” Peter said, voice shaking. He still wasn’t meeting their eyes.

“Why are those the only two options available? Maybe I draw a card and get a much better option and I can still save him? There’s gotta be another way than for me to just throw myself into the line of fire.”

“You can draw a card and maybe you’ll hit one of the villains, maybe you won’t.” Then Peter finally looked up, finally met Tony’s eyes. His voice wasn’t shaking anymore, and he said, “But that doesn’t change the face that I know the future, and I know that the next hit is going to kill Doctor Strange. The only thing that can stop that from happening is you taking the hit for him. So, what are you going to do?”

Tapping his card, Tony had to give it to Peter. It might not be an exact mirror of the scenario, but it was close enough.

“I don’t think I like Calvinball,” Tony said.

“Did I say this was Calvinball?” Peter asked, his face full of false innocence. “I’m sorry. This is Peterball.”

Tony took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Of course, he knew what he would do. It was what he would always do. No matter what Rogers had thought all those years ago, Tony knew when the sacrifice play was the smart play.

And no way was a teammate going down if Tony could do something about it. Especially not a teammate he…trusted. 

Like he trusted Stephen.

_Damn it, Peter._

Tony felt himself slowly let go of his anger…and this time it stayed away.

“I move in front of Strange…and take the hit,” Tony said, and he had to admit even though he was slightly annoyed, he was also proud of Peter. 

“I knew you would,” Peter said, then put down the die. “Because you’re a good person. Just like Doctor Strange.”

Stephen exhaled from his propped-up position on that maggot-ridden pillow, and it felt like something had shifted between them. It may have felt like a rotten tooth being pulled, but Tony knew in his heart he’d forgiven Stephen.

“You know that was a private conversation, right?” Tony asked Peter, putting all his cards on the table and outing the elephant in the room.

“You know that you were literally having that private conversation right in front of me on Titan, right?” Peter said, picking up the cards. “I don’t like it when you guys fight,” he whispered. “It feels terrible.”

At least Tony had enough manners to avoid asking why Peter felt that way, but that didn’t mean he understood.

“I’m sorry you had to hear all that, Peter. But it’s all going to be alright,” Stephen said.

“Okay,” Peter nodded. “This was fun. We should have game night every week.”

“Fun?” Tony asked, astonished. “That was fun for you? I never want to play Peterball ever again.”

“Yeah, neither do I. Way too stressful,” Peter said. “We can play board games. Or D&D! But wouldn’t it be nice to have a steady family game night? I can bring Ned, and you can meet my Aunt May, Doctor Strange and—” Peter paused as he looked over at Tony and Stephen, who was staring at Tony.

“What?” Tony asked, confused.

“Peter, I would love to have…family game night with you, and meet your Aunt and Ned,” Stephen said, and Tony could feel his sadness. His regret. “But um, Tony’s extremely busy and I don’t know that having a set schedule for a game night is realistic for someone with so many responsibilities.”

“Oh,” Tony suddenly blurted out loud. _Family_ game night. How he’d missed that one particular, extremely important word he’d never know. The word threw him for a loop, it was so foreign. The concept of family had always been broken in his mind. He’d had one when he was younger, even if it had been kind of terrible. But he’d lost it when he was so young, it almost felt like another life.

He loved Rhodey like a brother, but that had never felt exactly like _family_. Pepper too, even if that had been a different kind of love. It hadn’t felt all-encompassing, it hadn’t given him that feeling of safety and _home_ he’d always wanted.

He’d had hope for maybe about ten seconds that he could have that with the Avengers, but look how that turned out. Maybe if they hadn’t come together in the way that they had things could have been different. Either way, they had never been a real family. Not for Tony, anyway. And now they were gone for good.

So, the idea of Peter wanting to make a little family out of Tony and…this guy they’d both met a few days ago…

This guy Tony was _married_ to…

Tony stopped for a moment, let the silence between he and Peter and Stephen drift as he paused to consider. Because that thought was wrong. Stephen wasn’t just some guy they’d met a few days ago. Stephen was Tony’s…something and Tony had trusted him to help save the universe. 

And it had worked. And now Peter was along for the ride and he just looked so damned _happy_ at the idea of spending time with the two of them.

They had miles to go before they could rest, Tony most of all. But maybe the answer couldn’t be figured out in one conversation. Maybe the answer to the big question of what he and Stephen were going to do now would have to be answered over time.

_Son of a bitch._

Well, the longest journeys still started with a single step. An olive branch, an extended hand. A deck of cards.

He didn’t know exactly what he and Stephen were going to do, but he could do this.

“Don’t sell me so short, Doc. It’s been since…well, never since I’ve had family game night.” Tony smiled at Peter, who looked like Christmas had come early. “Might have to be every other Tuesday though. And no D&D. I don’t have the time or energy to create a character.”

“Okay!” Peter said, almost bouncing in his seat. “Is that okay with you, Doctor Strange?”

Tony looked over to Stephen only to see very blue eyes staring right back at him, almost like they couldn’t believe what he’d just said. Like he’d expected rejection.

“Yeah, Doc. My place or yours? Although I think your house might try to eat my kid.”

Stephen finally seemed to shake himself out of his disbelief. “What? No, it might be better for everyone if we didn’t meet at the Sanctum. Of course it is in New York, whereas the Compound—“

“Like I don’t have a place in the city. I even have a place in the city near Queens,” Tony said, waving off the concern. “Point is, family game night is go?”

Visibly gulping and still looking like the floor was about to collapse from underneath him, Stephen nodded and said, “Family game night is go.”

Peter didn’t say anything to that. He just smiled, toed off his shoes, and got comfortable under one of the cot’s moth-eaten blankets.

*

A few hours later, they were all in various slouching positions on the cot. It was far too small to fit three people, probably ridden with space bugs, but none of them seemed to want to leave. Tony definitely didn’t. Not with the way Peter had looked so happy and the way Stephen was looking at him like he’d disappear any minute.

“So…” he said, checking on Peter and finding him asleep. “We should talk.”

_Fear_

_Loneliness_

_Sorrow_

“Yes, I suppose we should. It was very kind of you to include me in your family game night plans, but it’s not necessary, Tony. Really, I understand if you never want to see me again.”

“I don’t,” Tony said, flippantly. 

Stephen jerked like he’d been slapped.

Tony sighed. “I meant I don’t understand why you think I’d never want to see you again. I mean, is that even a realistic choice?”

“There’s no sort of forced element with this bond,” Stephen said, eyes glued to his hands. “We don’t have to do anything if we don’t want to. If there’s ever a battle that would call for the use of the bond, we could use it, but otherwise it’ll continue as it currently is until the end of our lives, then beyond.”

“Yeah, but Doc. Stephen. I can literally feel you in my heart.” Tony wanted to explain it to Stephen, how he knew the pain Stephen was in even now, but he didn’t have to. Because Stephen already knew. “I don’t understand how you could think I could just walk away from this.”

“Because you didn’t ask for it,” Stephen said. “And because I know…”

And Tony heard the words he wasn’t saying. _”Because you don’t love me the way I love you.”_

Stephen cleared his throat and said, “Because I don’t want to be a burden to you. Look…this thing,” he gestured towards himself and Tony, “yes, it’s intense now, but it will pass. What I went through when I used the Time Stone on Titan wasn’t something humans were meant to experience.” 

Stephen sighed and closed his eyes. A knot in Tony’s chest loosened just a little as Stephen visibly relaxed. “Looking into so many futures, spending as much time with you as I did…it’s probably natural that I developed these feelings.”

For once, Tony stayed quiet, no sarcastic quips about his charm or looks when he _knew_ how serious Stephen was. 

“For what it’s worth,” Stephen said, “I’m sorry for forcing you to go through this whole ordeal.”

“You didn’t force anything, Doc,” Tony said. He couldn’t let Stephen blame himself for that. “This is all on Thanos, not you.”

Nodding, Stephen said, “I didn’t mean that. I meant…I know how absolutely awful I feel. How it feels like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, like there’s no point to me except—“

He cut himself off, like he was going to reveal too much. It was a ridiculous thought, Tony thought, since yeah, he knew that was exactly how Stephen was feeling.

Stephen let his head hit the wall that was holding him up. “It’s bad enough that I’m feeling this way, let alone to subject you to all of it.”

His face looked hard, like it was etched in stone, but Tony could feel his sadness, his heartache. Even his embarrassment.

“This will pass, I’m sure. When we get home, you should just go back to your life.” Stephen coughed to mask a sob and that icy demeanor slipped for a just a second. “You can actually enjoy it now. The big bad you’ve been fearing is gone.”

Tony never thought in a million lifetimes (let alone fourteen) that he’d find someone more willing to sacrifice himself. The fact that Stephen was so willing to put his own happiness aside for Tony felt awful. It felt wrong in the worst of ways. Tony reminded himself of a truth he’d discovered on Titan: Stephen was an idiot, and Tony had to protect him at all costs.

“I don’t know how you expect me to do that. I honestly don’t even know how it’s going to feel just being a few dozen miles away from you. And you expect me to never see you again?” Tony laced his fingers together and tried to focus on the feelings of protectiveness he felt. He tried to let himself feel that he truly did care about Stephen, how Stephen wasn’t the burden he thought he was.

“What about what I want, Doc? Because I wasn’t lying when I said I needed friends. And I wasn’t blowing smoke up your cape when I said I was glad I had you two with me on Titan. We make a good team,” Tony said, and he hoped Stephen believed him.

He felt Stephen’s turmoil churn, like someone in icy water was struggling to come up for breath but unable to reach the surface. His face remained stoic, but his hands were shaking and gently stroking the collar of the cape.

Tony wanted to say more. He wanted to tell Stephen that he knew the kind of man he was. That he’d seen the heart of him on Titan, and he’d known that Stephen was his to protect. That Tony had him hidden safely behind his heart and that whether or not they ever saw each other again, Tony knew Stephen would always be there.

And if they had all that, why not at least try to be friends too?

Maybe Stephen finally felt some of what Tony was feeling because he looked up at him, almost in shock.

_Hope_

_Fear_

_Love_

Like it had been when Tony had first felt it, Stephen’s love for him was overwhelming and if Tony wasn’t feeling it burn behind his own heart he would never have believed the depth of it. Maybe he didn’t feel the same way about Stephen—how could he, after a few days?—but he knew how to treat a friend.

Slowly, he laid his hand on top of Stephen’s where he was still toying with the cape. He waited until Stephen uncurled his fingers, then loosely gripped his hand.

“Plus, Peter would probably try to play real-life Peterball if we never saw you again. And by real-life Peterball I mean he’d probably just come after us with his instant kill mode. And you don’t want to mess with Karen. I designed her.”

The heavy moment was broken, and Stephen chuckled a little and nodded. He took a deep breath, seemed to concentrate for a moment, and Tony felt a little lighter. Like maybe Stephen was beginning to believe him. Like maybe this could all be okay.

His cape put its collar over their hands.

“Uh, excuse me, cape, but we were having a moment.”

“Cloak,” Stephen said, removing his hand from under Tony’s. Tony put his hand back in his lap and shook off the feeling that he hadn’t been ready to let go.

“What now?” he said, shaking himself.

“Tony, meet the Cloak of Levitation. It’s an ancient artifact that has chosen me as its master. And it’s sentient, so you can talk to it.”

“Yeah, that part I figured out a while ago. Most loyal outerwear in the galaxy.”

“In the multiverse, I’m fairly certain,” Stephen said, and the Cloak nodded with its collar. 

“So…we’re gonna try for the friend thing?” Tony asked. For some good reason he was absolutely terrified that Stephen would hide himself away with his pain, and Tony would never see him again.

Stephen paused for a moment like he was really considering just leaving and never speaking to either Peter or Tony ever again. Tony worried his lip and waited for Stephen to decide.

“Okay, Tony,” he finally said. “We can try. I don’t know how well this could possibly work, but I’m willing to try if you are.”

“Great!” Tony exclaimed and clapped his hands together. He was surprised by how happy Stephen had made him, just by saying he was willing to try. 

“Well now that that’s out of the way,” Tony said, “we should probably talk about the great, big, gaudy glove in the room.” He looked over to where Thanos’ glove was just sitting out in the open like it wasn’t the greatest weapon in the galaxy.

Stephen nodded. “I’ll take it to the Sanctum until we can divide the stones and get them off Earth. Hopefully Quill’s team can stick around for a while so we can send some away with them.”

“Okay, good idea,” Tony said, holding up a finger. “Except a better one might be to keep it several stories underground at _my_ sanctum where it’ll actually be safe.”

Stephen’s mouth opened in shock. “Are you implying the New York Sanctum isn’t safe? It’s one of the most well-protected places on the Earth. It’s the only Sanctum on Earth that has never fallen.”

“And there’s a Hulk-shaped hole in the roof. The roof _literally_ fell. I think the ugly glove goes with me.”

The Cloak seemed to take offense at that, curling up in Stephen’s lap like an angry kitten. Before they could really get going, there was a knock at the door.

“Yeah?” Tony said softly, trying to not wake Peter.

The door opened to Quill, still looking sullen but less shaky than he’d looked a few hours ago. Tony was trying to maneuver himself so as not to disturb Peter, but Stephen had already risen to meet Quill.

“Hey,” Quill said to Stephen. “How you feeling?”

“Much better,” Stephen said, and Tony could hear the gratitude in his voice. “Thank you for your assistance and for the ride back home.”

“Yeah,” Quill said, and something about the way he said it was off. His eyes had a thousand-yard stare, not really looking at Stephen. “You knew about Gamora. And you didn’t say anything.”

Something wasn’t right. “Steady, Quill,” Tony said.

“Yes,” Stephen said, looking and feeling contrite, “and I’m very—“

Stephen was abruptly cut off as Quill punched him in the face. The Cloak flared and wrapped around his master, but Tony…

Tony saw red.

He threw Quill against the wall, using his body to crowd him, making sure he couldn’t hurt Stephen further. In his anger and disbelief, it took him a moment to realize Quill wasn’t struggling.

“What just happened?” Peter asked from the cot, wiping his eyes. “What did I miss?”

“Tony, it’s okay,” Stephen said, cupping his cheek. “I had that coming to me. He gets one.”

“Yeah,” Quill said, still not struggling to break from Tony’s hold. “For Gamora. Just one.” He choked up for a moment, and it looked like he might break down again like he had on Titan. 

Then something seemed to shift inside him, and he gently pushed Tony off.

“We straight, wizard?” Quill asked.

“Yeah,” Stephen said, finally dropping his hands from his face. “We’re straight.”

“Good. We’re coming on Earth soon. Better figure out a way to hide that thing,” Quill said, gesturing to the big bad glove of death. Then he closed the door and left.

The door closing seemed to jostle Tony out of shock and anger. “The hell!” Tony shouted at the door.

“Are you okay, Doctor Strange?” Peter said, jumping up from the cot to see to Stephen.

“Let me see, Doc. He really laid it on you,” Tony said, and was happy when Stephen allowed Tony to examine his face. 

“I’m a doctor, Tony, I’d know if I had a broken cheekbone. I don’t. Quill was justifiably angry.”

“Why’d you let him hit you?” Peter asked.

“Because I should have told him about Gamora, but I didn’t. He had every right to be angry with me.”

“But not to hit you,” Tony said, still pissed. “If you hadn’t called it off, I would gone to town. No one messes with my…” Tony frowned, and realized this still _really_ bothered him. “What are we to each other now, Doc?”

Stephen stuttered a bit then said, “The term sorcerers usually use is ‘bonded.’”

“Um, yeah,” Tony hissed. “I don’t know about that. Sounds kinda weird.”

“Then why did you ask?”

“Didn’t think it would sound that weird.”

“You really are a douchebag, Tony,” Stephen said, his eyes smiling with a wince.

“Are you really okay?” Tony asked, carefully cupping Stephen’s cheek where Quill had decked him. There was a small abrasion and it was already starting to bruise, but it didn’t look too bad. 

He realized he was again holding Stephen’s face in his hands. He really had to stop doing that. He released Stephen and sat back on the probably disease-filled cot.

“Almost home,” Tony muttered. “What am I going to tell the world about this? What am I gonna tell _Pepper_ about this? About us?”

Stephen paced the room for a moment, and Tony closed his eyes as that familiar ache flowed through him. He was already so tired of Stephen feeling this way.

“Sorry,” Stephen muttered, then closed his eyes and again Tony felt the ache in his chest settle into a more manageable level. “Peter, can you see if there’s an ice pack or something like it in the supply cabinet,” Stephen asked, and waited for Peter to be out of ear-shot.

“There doesn’t have to be an ‘us,’ Tony. Really,” Stephen said sadly. “Even if you want Family Game Night and being friends. It doesn’t have to be…that.”

“Doc,” Tony breathed, then clutched his chest again. “I can literally feel the pain it caused you to say that sentence. And didn’t you say this would make it difficult for me to be with anyone else? Cause I can kinda see why, what with having my own personal pocket wizard always with me.”

“I just don’t want—“ Stephen stuttered and it was like his abruptly words left him. “I don’t want you to feel obligated.”

“I don’t. I won’t. And besides. Friends. I need more of them. And you’re a good man.” Tony gestured towards Peter. “And you already love my kid.”

Stephen smiled. “I do love Peter.”

“See?” Tony said, smiling now. “It can’t be all bad then. Everyone loves Peter.”

*

The Benetar picked up communication with the Compound and Tony had access to Friday again. He had the ship fly over New York City, just to let people know he’d returned.

“Drama queen,” Stephen muttered.

“You’re wearing a cape,” Tony whispered back. 

“It’s a Cloak, Mr. Stark!” Peter chirped. 

A few minutes later and they were landing at Avengers Compound upstate. Quill went down the steps and put his feet back on Earth for the first time in decades. He looked around his home planet in awe. Tony told himself that even if Quill didn’t want to see Missouri that didn’t mean he couldn’t show Quill his old planet in style.

The rest of the Guardians followed him, and Quill seemed to be pointing things out, showing them around. They looked like they might be okay.

A voice cried out, “Peter!”

“May!” 

Tony watched their reunion and felt his heart warm. When he’d first realized Peter was on the ship, he didn’t dare hope that this reunion would happen. At best he thought they’d be marooned in space. At worst…

“Tony!”

“Tony!”

He didn’t know that he’d resigned himself to never seeing his two favorite people again until he watched Pepper and Rhodey run across the lawn to greet him.

He gave them both a full body embrace and melted in their arms. He was so glad to be with them, with people who knew and loved him. People he’d trusted for years, people who’d always be with him. 

“What’d I say about riding with me next time, Tony?” Rhodey asked, grabbing him by the shoulders. Pepper hugged him from behind and kissed his forehead. 

“Yeah, don’t worry. I was definitely not on the fun donut torture space ship.”

“I feel like I never want to know what donut torture is,” Rhodey said, wincing.

“It doesn’t look like you were alone,” Pepper said.

“Yeah, let me to introduce you to Quill and the team and…”

_Loneliness_

_Despair_

_Shame_

“ _What now?_ ,” Tony thought, feeling the most awful wave of sadness from Stephen. _”Can’t you just be happy we’re home for five minutes?_ ”

Tony looked around the lawn, but couldn’t find him. He saw movement and red just past a copse of trees and saw Stephen creating a portal. In a flash, Tony realized what had just happened. There hadn’t been anyone at the Compound to greet Stephen, and then Tony had abandoned him for Pepper and Rhodey in a heartbeat. 

He’d left Stephen out. Tony knew exactly how that felt, how it could break a heart always being on the outside looking in.

“Hey, Doc!” Tony shouted, but either Stephen didn’t hear him, or he didn’t want to. He stepped through the portal to the New York Sanctum and was gone.

Tony was left with a heaviness in his heart and an ache where Stephen hid behind it when he should be feeling nothing but relief and happiness at finally getting home.

“Tony, who was that?” Pepper asked.

“That was…a friend.” Tony wrapped an arm around Pepper’s and Rhodey’s shoulders as they started the walk back to the compound.

“He was wearing a cape,” Rhodey said.

“It’s a Cloak,” Tony replied, kicking himself with every step.


	6. Grab a Friend, That's Your Second

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the response, everyone! All your comments have been so kind, and I truly appreciate each one of them. So this chapter was a lot of fun to write, mostly because it's slightly lighter than previous chapters. Also, I mentally consider this the end of the beginning of this story. That's right. 30k words in and the beginning is over. Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta. They are worth their weight in gold.

Every single part of Stephen ached, from his back to his broken hands to his foolish heart. He groaned as he stepped through the portal to the Sanctum, just wanting all of this to be over. He’d return to his home, rest, then lick his wounds in peace. He could try to forget the absolute mess he’d gotten himself into. 

_Confusion_

_Regret_

_Sorrow_

Stephen winced as he closed the portal. There would be no ignoring Tony. He would always be with him now, like a combustion engine constantly purring behind his heart. He’d work on getting better control over his traitorous heart soon. Some relief from Stephen’s heartache was the least he could do for Tony. 

But he couldn’t do that right now. The best he could do for now was try to rest, get his head on straight, then see what work needed to be done. 

But first, a shower. Then sleep for as long as possible. And try to ignore the Hulk-shaped hole in the ceiling.

Maybe if he was lucky there’d be Hulk-themed ice cream in the Sanctum’s broken-down freezer.

“Stephen?”

“Ugh,” Stephen groaned, then turned towards the library. Wong stood in the doorway looking well-rested and whole. Stephen tried not to hate him.

“Hmph,” Wong grunted. “I’m glad to see you as well.”

“I’m sorry, Wong,” Stephen said. His shoulders slumped and the Cloak was probably doing at least twenty five percent of the work in keeping him up. “I’m very glad to see you. I am _extremely_ glad to be home.”

Wong approached him, his face a mix of anger and relief, then suddenly stopped. He looked Stephen up and down, then put his hands up and bent his knees like he was bracing for an attack.

“What’s happened?” Wong asked.

Confused, Stephen shook his head. “What?” So many things had happened in the past few days. But which would make Wong take a defensive stance against him? “You mean when I was taken?” He rubbed a shaking hand over his face. “Definitely not anything you’d expect, but you can put your hands down.”

Wong did not put his hands down. Frustrated and wanting his bed, Stephen let the Cloak take even more of his weight and threw his head back.

“Can we _please_ talk about this later? I’m dead on my feet.”

Wong looked him over again, his face looking more confused than fearful. “You are not possessed.”

Now it was Stephen’s turn to look confused. “No?”

“Stephen,” Wong said, and cast a shield. He gestured to Stephen’s chest. “There is someone in there with you.” 

Stephen closed his eyes and groaned. He wasn’t getting his nice comfy bed anytime soon.

“I absolutely refuse to tell you about any of this before I have a shower. Please, Wong, at least let me have that. I just helped save the universe, and I had to do something unthinkable in order to do it.”

That wasn’t the right thing to say, because Wong raised another shield.

“Do you need help? Whatever is with you doesn’t seem to be malicious, but appearances can be deceiving.”

Stephen couldn’t help himself. He laughed. “Oh, he can definitely be malicious, but no. Not the way you’re thinking. Five minutes, Wong. I promise.”

Wong nodded, acquiescing. “I will go with you. A threat like this should not be allowed unlimited access to the Sanctum.”

“Yeah, no,” Stephen said, “you’re not following me into the shower. Weirdo.”

“Stephen—“

“He’s not a threat,” Stephen said, and the fact that he was saying ‘he’ and not ‘it’ seemed to make Wong more curious than fearful. “I promise, I will be fine for five minutes.”

Eventually, Wong nodded and lowered his shields. He awkwardly walked backwards, keeping an eye on Stephen as he went to the kitchen, hopefully to make tea. If Stephen was extremely lucky (doubtful), maybe there would be ice cream.

Seven minutes and one far too-short shower later, Stephen (with assistance from the Cloak) descended the stairs, careful to avoid the other Hulk-shaped hole. To his eternal gratitude, Wong had made tea. It was sitting on a little table in between two chairs in the library. 

Wong poured for him, and the Cloak helped to steady his hands as he brought the cup to his mouth. He blew on the tea, then felt like a good portion of his soul healed when he took the first sip.

“Alright, Strange. You’ve had your shower, you’ve had your tea. Now tell me why you don’t seem to be alarmed at the foreign presence in your soul.”

Trying to delay this just a bit longer, Stephen decided to try his luck. “Is there any ice cream?”

“No ice cream in the library.”

“Come on,” Stephen whined. “I just got back from being abducted. To space!”

“Exactly,” Wong said. “I’ve been here for days worrying that my friend was dead. Or worse.”

Stephen glared. He knew a ridiculous excuse when he heard one. “You ate all the ice cream.”

“I was very worried. Now spill.”

He’d known he was going to have to tell Wong, and eventually the elder sorcerers at Kamar-Taj, about soul-bonding with Tony. He’d have to debrief soon, and everyone would want to know exactly what happened and what sort of magic had been used. There would have been no getting out of informing them about such an enormous life-altering decision, even if the person he’d bonded with had been a civilian.

But the fact that he was soul-bonded to Tony Stark meant complications. Potentially the kinds of complications that could change how the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have operated for millennia.

Stephen had known all of that, but had left it to simmer in the back of his mind. There had been far more pressing matters at the time: defeating Thanos, Tony himself, plus Stephen navigating his own—and then Tony’s—tumultuous emotions.

So, he hadn’t exactly had a lot of time to figure out exactly how he’d explain this to Wong.

In fact, he’d given it all of two minutes consideration while taking a shower. Which was more than Wong—that ice cream thief—deserved considering how precious that shower had been. He’d considered starting from the time the Maw had captured him, giving him a brief summary of the fourteen million futures he’d seen, then telling him about how he’d had no other choice but to bind his soul to Tony’s.

But that would’ve taken far too much effort. And he was very tired.

So, he just said, “Oshtur’s Soul Bond.”

Wong’s tea cup dangerously clattered against its saucer before he put it on the small table. His face was twisted in something between shock and fear, and Stephen wondered why.

“With who?” Wong finally asked.

“Stark,” Stephen said simply.

If the situation had been less serious, and Stephen less exhausted, the look of shock on Wong’s face would have been hilarious. 

“Why?” Wong asked, astonished and troubled. He ran a hand over his head, and Stephen could see that his thoughts were running away from him.

It was a very fair question, and Stephen knew he wouldn’t get out of this without telling the full story. Not after the bombshell he’d just dropped.

So he told Wong about waking up on the spaceship. About how he was tortured by that awful grey creature Thanos called the Maw. About how for a few minutes he’d thought he was going to die in the most painful way possible because he would never give up the Time Stone.

He told him about being rescued by Tony and Peter. About how he’d misjudged Tony so badly when they’d first interacted. About meeting Quill and his crew, how sweet and gentle Mantis was. 

“I used the Time Stone,” he said next. 

“You did what?” Wong asked, frowning in disbelief. 

That look on Wong’s face alarmed Stephen. “You don’t understand! I had to. There were too many variables and we _had_ to get it right the first time. If Thanos had got his hands on it—“

Wong held up a hand, and Stephen paused. He leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers. 

After a moment, he said, “You’re right, Stephen. It would have been your greatest weapon in a time with no greater need.”

Stephen hadn’t known how much Wong’s approval would mean to him until he had it. He sagged further into the Cloak. “Thank you. I looked in over fourteen million futures, and there was only one scenario when we won. I had to bind my soul to Tony Stark’s.”

Wong ran his index finger over his top lip, a gesture that always meant he was in deep thought. “How did you win?”

“Once I used the stone, the future was clear. It happened exactly as I saw it,” Stephen said, and the Cloak helped him pour more tea. “Stark used the bond to magically reinforce his nanoparticles and trapped Thanos. Then I sent him to a pocket dimension he can never escape.”

Wong looked at Stephen with pride in his eyes and smiled. “A cage created by two masters.” His eyes glittered, and Stephen had never seen such approval in Wong’s eyes. “Two masters whose souls are entwined. Well done, Stephen. Magic would fall before he escapes.”

It felt like a dam bursting, like somehow his sin was absolved. Even though he knew the truth, even though Tony had accepted his word, a large part of Stephen still felt shame. He knew there was no logic to feeling guilty about bonding with Tony, but there came a certain point where logic couldn’t explain away the feeling that he’d done something wrong.

That he’d bonded himself to a man he loved, who didn’t love him back.

Seeing the uncharacteristic smile on Wong’s face, witnessing his approval, healed a little of the ache in Stephen’s soul.

And to his great mortification, a sob escaped. He tried to hold back his tears, but the stress of the past few days caught up to him. He sobbed uncontrollably, right there in front of Wong. 

The Cloak placed his tea cup on the little table for him, then wrapped itself firmly around his body. 

“Stephen,” Wong said, and Stephen was surprised to see Wong crouching in front of him. He hadn’t noticed he’d left his seat. “What is it?”

He couldn’t tell Wong. He just couldn’t. Tony already knew about his unreciprocated feelings. The idea of someone else knowing was too much. The shame was too great.

“Stress,” he said, wiping his face and trying to get control of his breath. “And fatigue. And probably low blood sugar. It’s your fault for eating all the ice cream.” He closed his eyes. “Forgive me, I’m making a scene. And a mess of the Cloak.”

The Cloak shook its collar and wrapped itself around Stephen tighter.

Wong shook his head, not accepting Stephen’s lie. “There’s something more than that. Tell me, please. It’s obviously troubling you. Whatever it is, after all you’ve been through, you shouldn’t have to deal with such a burden alone.”

Stephen took a deep breath, then picked up his tea cup again. He wanted to lie to Wong. Make up some half-truth to put him off the scent, anything so he could leave this conversation and go upstairs where he could finally sleep.

But he knew he couldn’t do that. Wong was right. This was too much to bear by himself. He needed someone to understand what he was going through aside from Tony. And Wong would understand, Wong wouldn’t judge him.

“I looked into fourteen million futures. Each one I fought at Stark’s side. After a while…” He froze mid-sentence, not knowing how to say that after about the first thousand futures he’d started to fall in love with Tony Stark. By the millionth, he was head over heels, with no chance of escape. How could anyone who really knew Tony not fall in love with him?

Wong frowned, confused, but the frown slowly left his face. It was replaced by a look of knowing. 

“You love him,” he said plainly.

Stephen nodded.

“And he knows. Of course, he knows,” Wong said, obviously to himself. “That’s the nature of the bond.”

“Yes.”

Wong sat back in his chair and ran a hand over his face.

“Did he react poorly?” Wong asked sharply. “Is that why you’re so upset?”

“No, he reacted like the good man I know him to be. We have family game night with Peter scheduled for every other Tuesday.”

Wong scowled and his posture went rigid. “Tell me what he did to you. Spare no detail,” he said, and his voice promised violence.

Stephen was confused for a moment before he realized that maybe he’d become too known for his sarcasm.

“No, I’m serious. He wants to be friends. He, Peter Parker, and I are planning on meeting twice a month for games. He was kind, he was understanding, he literally held my hand and made sure I wouldn’t disappear from his life. And worst of all, he _meant all of it_.”

Wong’s face was surely going to just fall off if he kept frowning like this. “So he did not reject you? He didn’t curse you or say foul things to you?”

Stephen put his face in his hands. “No. The exact opposite.”

Wong sat still for a moment, and gave Stephen a once-over. He must have taken in how tired Stephen was, how his eyes were red-rimmed, his posture slouched. Stephen knew he looked as miserable as he felt.

“Then why are you downhearted?” Wong asked.

When he put it that way, Stephen felt even more foolish. He should be counting his lucky stars that Tony had been as kind as he was. The entire situation could have been much, much worse if Tony had been even a little less understanding. As it was, Stephen had gained something amazing in meeting Peter. That boy was a spark of joy, a light in a dark room. Maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised that Peter embraced him so quickly, but he was. And he was extremely grateful that he’d taken to Stephen the way he did.

He shouldn’t want more. He’d gained so much. An enormous universe-ending threat was defeated, and Stephen was up two friends. He should be happy with what he had. 

“Selfishness, I suppose,” he finally said. “I still haven’t learned it isn’t all about me.” He thought about Tony, how he was under the constant strain of Stephen’s heartache, and tried to remind himself of all he gained.

Maybe if he tried hard enough it would work.

“I somehow doubt that,” Wong said a moment later. “You’ve made a great sacrifice for our universe. I don’t think selfishness comes into it.”

Stephen didn’t know what to say to that.

“You said you fell in love with Stark over time. Why not give him time to get to know you? It hardly seems fair that you’ve had so much time with him when he hasn’t had the same time with you. He is a good man, Stephen.”

Stephen bit his tongue. He did not say that Tony spending more time with him would probably be counterproductive to making Tony love him. It would probably accomplish the opposite. He knew exactly what he was, he knew he tended to drive away everyone who came into contact with him.

His only friends in the world were Wong and the Cloak. How pathetic was that?

“You’re right,” he said, just for the sake of ending this conversation and going to bed. “And I’m sure he’ll come calling soon so we can debrief. Or whatever it is people do after situations like this. But for now, I really do need to rest.”

Wong nodded and stood up. “Yes, you should do that. I’ll continue standing guard. You get as much sleep as you can.”

Stephen didn’t bother to even try standing up. He allowed the Cloak to do all the work in getting him up and to his room. Before he left, Wong called out to him.

“Oh, and Stephen?” Wong said. He waited until the Cloak helped Stephen turn, then said, “Thank you.”

Stephen frowned. “For what?”

“For saving us all.”

*

Tony was in that wonderful middle ground between sleep and awake. That amazing place where he wasn’t quite asleep but definitely not fully awake yet. He happily drifted there for a moment, not caring what he had planned for the day or what responsibilities awaited him.

It wasn’t until he became aware of a soft, sad little flutter behind his heart that he fully woke.

The events of the past few days hit him like a sledgehammer. Tony shot up in bed with a gasp.

“Boss?” said Friday. “Are you okay?”

He took slow breaths and wiped a hand over his face. “Yeah,” he gasped. “How long was I out?”

“Six and a half hours. Ms. Potts is waiting for you in the kitchen.”

“Oh,” he said. “ _Oh,_.” He collapsed back on the bed. “Oh, God. Please no.”

“Would you like me to tell her you aren’t up for company?” 

“Ha! You can try.” Tony knew there would be no getting out of this conversation. A part of him was surprised she had let him sleep as long as he had, but then Pepper had always been trying to get him to sleep more. He’d gotten Quill and the gang into the Compound and to their own floor, chucked the glove of death into a safe in the lowest sub-level of his workshop, then surrounded it with Iron Man suits. 

Then by some miracle he made it to his bed before he passed out.

“I asked her if we could reschedule,” Friday said a moment later. “She just laughed.”

“That’s my girl,” Tony said, resigning himself to the inevitable. “Tell her I’m coming.”

He dressed quickly. There was no use putting off this conversation, even if it was going to be difficult.

He had no idea how to explain what had happened to Pepper. How could he possibly explain that magic existed and that he got soul-married or whatever to some random guy that accosted him at the park?

Yeah, he had no idea how he was going to explain this. Everything had happened so quickly, and it was all so out of his wheelhouse, he could barely understand it all himself.

He rounded the corner to the kitchen and saw Pepper sitting at the small kitchen table, typing on her laptop.

Abruptly, he stopped. Like a deer in the headlights, he panicked. Everything became very real in a way it hadn’t been while on an alien planet, then a broken-down, flea-ridden space ship. He was about to sit down with his friend, that he had once dated, and tell her he had gotten space-married to a wizard. 

Breathing suddenly became harder, and he broke out in a sweat. He tried to stop it, tried to tell himself that this was just Pepper he was going to be talking to. All he had to do was talk to Pepper about how he’d gotten married. Married with a twist and no possibility for divorce. Oh, and also about after his death…

He felt a calming flutter behind his heart. He knew the emotion wasn’t his, that the feeling being poured into him came from Stephen, but he didn’t care. He closed his eyes and grabbed onto Stephen with everything he had. 

His breathing slowed and he wiped the sweat from his face. He tried to send some kind of thanks through their bond, some gratitude to Stephen, but wasn’t sure he was doing it right. 

They didn’t teach this at MIT.

He didn’t know what he looked like by the time he finally reached the kitchen table. Whatever it was, Pepper frowned at him and asked, “Did you get enough sleep?”

Tony snuffled and plopped down in his chair. “Maybe?”

Pepper finished typing something then said, “If you’re really not feeling up to this, I can come back.”

“No, trust me. The longer I put this off, the worse it’ll be.”

Pepper frowned and got that little crinkle in between her eyebrows that never failed to make Tony smile.

Except now. Apparently, eyebrow crinkles had no power against the terror Tony was feeling at the thought of this conversation.

“Tony, you’re scaring me. What happened up there? You said that everything was taken care of, that there was no dire emergency.”

“Yeah, everything was handled. No red alert. Where are Quill and company?” He let his head fall against his hand.

“Resting. Then I have to talk to Thor—“

Tony perked up. “Thor’s here?” 

Pepper sighed. “No, we’re not getting sidetracked. All of that can wait until later. Tell me what happened, Tony. The last time you looked at me like this you were dying.”

Tony ran a hand through his hair and tried to word it perfectly in his head. How the hell did he explain magic, explain Stephen, and everything that had happened? Where did he even begin? He chewed on a nail, and he knew he had to say something soon, because Pepper was looking more and more nervous.

“I…kinda got married.”

Tony winced. 

_Why, Stark, why was that the first thing that came out of your mouth?_

Pepper looked shocked, then thoughtful, then understanding.

“I didn’t even know you were dating someone. Were you afraid to tell me?”

Oh, God. What a great opening salvo. He was already regretting getting out of bed. “Yeah, you got the wrong idea, Pep. That’s not really it at all.”

“Tony,” she said. Her smile was small but genuine. “I just want you to be happy. That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you. You don’t have to be afraid to tell me things like this. We’re friends, right?”

Tony nodded. If there was one person he knew he could count on to be on his side, it was Pepper.

“Then as your friend, all I want is for you to be happy.” She slowly reached a hand across the table, gently laying it on his. “So, Tony, are you happy?” 

Tony bit his nail straight through and tasted blood. He brought the hand to his chest, right under his heart where he could feel Stephen. 

He looked Pepper straight in the eyes and said, “No.”

Pepper looked devastated. Her face went from soft and loving to distraught in a heartbeat.

“Pepper…it’s a really long story. And it’s going to sound absolutely crazy. It happened to me and I still barely believe it. I just really, really need you to believe me.” 

“Tony, of course I’ll believe you.” She squeezed his hand. “I’ll believe anything you tell me.”

“I mean _really_ crazy. But all of this happened, and I just need… I just—“ 

He could feel himself start to panic again, and this time the calming sensation from Stephen wasn’t enough to talk him down. He closed his eyes and put his head in his hands. He smelled blood and started to feel lightheaded. 

Before he could fall off the cliff of a full-blown panic attack, he felt slim fingers carding through his hair. 

It was enough.

He somehow got his breathing under control, and he felt Stephen’s concern for him fall to the background. He wrapped his arms around Pepper and held on tight.

“I will believe you,” she said. “I swear, Tony. After everything we’ve been through together, I doubt there’s much that could shock me.”

Tony choked out a laugh. “Oh, I hate to prove you wrong, Ms. Potts.”

Pepper released him and sat in her own chair, giving him an encouraging smile. 

“Now take a deep breath, and tell me what happened.”

Nodding, Tony thought about how the hell he was going to explain all this to her. Should he start at the beginning? And what proof could he offer her? And he didn’t even know any of the details of the spell or—

“No,” Pepper said firmly, calling Tony back from the spiral he’d been heading down. “Don’t think about what to tell me. Just tell me what you _need_ to tell me.”

Closing his eyes, Tony concentrated for just a moment on the feeling behind his heart. He wasn’t sure why, because yeah it wasn’t his fault, but Stephen was kind of the reason he was having this conversation. Stephen and all the weirdness that came with him didn’t exactly inspire a feeling of calm. Still, he reached out to Stephen, needing support.

_”You got me into this, wizard…”_

He closed his eyes and felt Stephen respond. He felt something like a warm breeze run through him, comforting him. He took a deep breath and took the plunge.

“Four things,” Tony said. “One.” He held up a finger. “Magic is real. Two.” He held up another finger. “Souls are real. So is the afterlife.”

The little wrinkle between Pepper’s eyebrows was back. Tony concentrated on that so he didn’t have to look her in the eyes while he said this next part.

“Three. I had to bind my soul with a wizard’s in order to stop a genocidal maniac from killing half of the population of the universe.”

Pepper’s eyes went wide. Tony couldn’t tell if she looked disbelieving or simply astonished.

“Four. It’s permanent. No possibility of divorce. I can feel him behind my heart, Pepper. He’s here.” He prodded the space under his heart forcefully. “Right now. He’s here with me _right now._ He’s going to be with me tomorrow and the next day and the day after that. And when we die, our souls will be joined in some freaky wizard Heaven or… Oh, God, if the afterlife exists does Hell exist? Am I going to hell?”

“Shh,” Pepper whispered, and at some point she’d managed to come back to Tony’s side of the table. “It’s okay,” she said. “It’s going to be okay. Tony,” she smiled and held his face in her hands. “I’m going to ask you one question. Just one. I want you to think about it and answer me honestly, okay?”

“Yeah, okay,” Tony said.

“What kind of man is he?”

Tony blinked. Of all the possible questions that could have come out of the bombshell he’d just dropped, he didn’t expect that one. “Um, what?”

“The wizard,” Pepper said, sitting back in her chair again. “What’s his name?”

“Stephen.”

“Stephen,” Pepper said. “What kind of man is Stephen? Is he nice? Is he cruel? Does he seem like the kind of man who would kick a dog? Tell me about him.”

Tony’s mouth moved against his own accord for a second while he tried to figure out how to answer that question. “Yeah, he’s nice,” Tony said finally said. “He’s…well, he’s a snarky, sarcastic asshole sometimes, but yeah he’s a nice guy. A good guy. A good man.”

Pepper smiled and held Tony’s hand in her own. “That’s good. So he’s a good man?”

“Yeah,” Tony sighed, then touched that spot on his chest. “The best.”

“The best?” Pepper asked, and put her other hand under Tony’s chin so he would meet her eyes. “Why is he the best?”

“Because he almost sacrificed himself to save the universe. And he _did_ sacrifice his soul. I mean, that’s what this is.” He gestured to his chest. “He might act like I made this huge sacrifice when I married him, but he made just as big a sacrifice when he married me. Maybe even bigger since he—“

Pepper frowned. “Since he what, Tony?”

How the hell was he supposed to explain the trickiest part of this entire situation to Pepper? How could he explain that Stephen had experienced fourteen million timelines with Tony, and had still somehow fallen in love with him?

And that Tony didn’t love him back. And the ache was agony on them both.

 _”Why not just say it plainly?”_.

“He’s in love with me.”

Pepper’s eyes went wide, and she sat back in her chair. She drummed her nails on the table, and Tony could see her strategically planning on what to say next. 

“Why is that a bad thing if he’s a good man?”

“Because I don’t love him!” He threw his hands up. “And he knows I don’t love him because he can feel it. And I hurt him, Pepper. I hurt him just by not loving him. And I feel this heartache _all the time_. It’s exhausting and it’s only been for a few days. And I don’t want to hurt him! I don’t want to hurt anybody, but especially not someone like Stephen! I don’t know what to do about all of this.”

“Alright," Pepper said. “Let me make sure I have all the major points down. You married a good man that you didn’t really know for reasons of saving the universe, and you can never, ever get a divorce. And because it wasn’t a normal marriage you can actually feel his emotions, including his love for you and his sadness that you don’t love him back.”

God, she was amazing. She somehow cut through all the bullshit and Tony’s anxiety and got him to tell her exactly what was bothering him without having to relive the past few days.

“Yup, those are the major points.” He leaned back in his chair and threw his hands up. "What am I gonna do, Pep?”

Without missing a beat, she said, “Well, first, you should have him come over so I can meet him.”

Tony put his elbows back on the table and shot her a dirty look. “What?”

“Well, if we’re talking what comes first, I need to meet him.” She said this like it was obvious. Like Tony was the one being ridiculous. “Don’t worry, I already like him. He loves you and whatever wizards do it must be enough to help keep you safe. He’s golden in my book. But I need to meet him. Oh! What does he look like? Is he cute?”

“Pepper—“

“What did you say his last name was?”

“I didn’t. Strange.”

“Not really, you’re still on the verge of panic. It’s completely understandable.” She opened her laptop and started typing. “What’s his last name?”

“Strange. Doctor Stephen Strange. He lives in the Village. And yeah, he’s kinda cute in a…weird way.”

Pepper glared at Tony, then laughed. “Who’s on first?” she muttered to herself while typing. She finished her google search and popped an eyebrow. “Kinda? Damn, Tony. My boy did good.”

Pepper turned the laptop around and revealed a few pictures of Stephen, from what must have been his life before he was a wizard. 

Doctor Stephen Strange, MD, Ph.D. He’d been a neurosurgeon. An extremely successful neurosurgeon, Tony mentally corrected himself. All the pictures Pepper found showed him in suits and tuxedos at hospital fundraisers and awards presentations for physicians. It looked like he’d had an extremely successful life for himself.

The man in these photos was…well, extremely handsome. A well-cut suit and decent lighting did wonders for him. But he also had a look of arrogance and apathy that Tony recognized in himself from the old days. What had happened to Stephen to take him from being a famed physician to a wizard guarding their reality?

“Did he get along well with Peter?” 

“Huh?” Tony asked, his eyes still on these old photos.

“Did he like Peter, Tony? Did they get along well?”

“Like a house on fire. Stephen loves Peter. I mean, who doesn’t? But well, it’s a long story about how he came to love the both of us so much and—“

“No,” Pepper said, taking the laptop away from Tony. “We’re not dealing with the details right now. Just the big stuff. So, he likes Peter?”

“He loves Peter,” Tony corrected, and he knew in his heart that was true. Stephen did love Peter, and that made Tony like him even more. 

“That’s wonderful, Tony.”

Tony nodded.

“Okay, so let’s make sure we’re on the same page. You married a good man under some very strange circumstances. He loves you very much. He also loves the boy you care for like a son. He’s a powerful wizard that can actually help you in your fights against whatever world-destroying terror has come after you that day. Oh, and he’s a doctor.”

She put her chin on the screen of her laptop and gave him _a look_.

Well, when she put it that way… “Your mom want you to marry a doctor, Potts?”

She smiled. “Yeah, but looks like you beat me to it.”

“What is this, Pep? What point are you trying to make?”

“I’m not trying to make a point,” she said, and she her tone was serious again. “All I’m doing is pointing out the truth, Tony. Whatever happened out there—and we’ll talk about it soon, yes—you married a good man who loves you, loves your son, has his own brand of weird so he can cope with yours, and is capable of protecting you.”

Tony didn’t like how much sense she was making. When she broke it down like that, this didn’t seem anywhere near as tragic as Tony had been thinking it was.

“Oh, and he’s hot. So there’s that.”

Dropping his chin into his palm, Tony smiled at her. A true, genuine smile. Only Pepper could break it down for Tony in a way he could understand. In a way he really needed. 

“Back off my wizard, Potts.”

Pepper hummed.

“What am I going to do, Pep? There’s no way out of this. He loves me, Pepper. He really, truly loves me. And I’m breaking his heart just breathing. It feels awful. It’s like a loop of hurt and all I want is to make it stop but I can’t.”

“Why not get to know him?”

“I’m afraid of hurting him,” Tony said in a knee-jerk response. “He’s so…fragile. I mean, sure on the surface he’s this tall, dark, angsty wizard. But I know him, Pep. Like, really, really know him. He can’t hide from me. He’s so fragile and sweet and I just feel like I want to take him,” he said, grabbing the space beneath his heart, “and hide him away. I just feel like he’s mine now. Mine to protect.”

Pepper lifted an eyebrow. “He’s yours?”

“Well, he’s my…ugh, I think he said the word wizards use is bondmate.”

“Oh,” she said, her face twisting a bit. “That’s a bit—“

“Weird. Yeah. I’ve just been saying we’re married. We can argue semantics later. It’s basically the same thing.”

They sat in silence for a moment, Tony rubbing his thumb over that spot on his chest. He was afraid of hurting Stephen, he realized. Hurting him worse than he already had.

Suddenly Pepper broke the quiet. “Could he be yours to love, too?”

Tony scoffed. “I don’t even know him!” Which was a lie, Tony knew. Tony knew Stephen better than anyone could ever know him. But he’d also only known him for a few days. Both of those thoughts were true, he reasoned. 

And what if he did get to know Stephen and nothing ever happened? He couldn’t force himself to fall in love with someone. It would either happen or it wouldn’t. That would hurt Stephen so badly.

“But Tony,” Pepper said, then held up a finger. “One, he’s a good man. Two, you’re already married to him, no possibility of divorce. Three, he loves you. Four, he loves Peter. Five, he can share your crazy super hero life with you. Six, he can protect you.”

“And seven,” Pepper turned her laptop around again. There was a high-quality photo of an awards banquet at some charity Tony vaguely recognized as his own. There, among the crowd of trust fund babies, was Stephen. Tony thought it curious that he could already pick him out of a crowd of people, especially since the picture was of his profile but taken from behind.

_Oh, no._

“And seven,” Pepper repeated herself. “That ass."

Tony feigned shock, mouth open and clutching his non-existent pearls. “The mouth on you, Ms. Potts.” 

Her smile lit up the room. He was so lucky she was still in his life. 

“Can you really feel what he’s feeling?” she asked.

“Yup,” he said, rubbing that spot again. He’d give himself a bruise if he wasn’t careful.

“What’s he feeling now?”

“Sad,” he said automatically. The soul-crushing heartache had dulled to a much-more bearable sadness that Tony was starting to wonder about. Was Stephen just constantly meditating or was he feeling better with some distance? “Sad and…” He tried to figure out exactly what Stephen was feeling because it felt vague. Like it wasn’t so much an emotion, exactly but maybe… “Hungry?”

Pepper blinked. “Hungry? Why would he be hungry?”

Tony shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe they don’t have anything in?”

“You didn’t think to check?”

Tony looked at her like she was being ridiculous. “ _How?”_ ”

“Tony,” she said, rubbing her temples. “What does he do for a living?”

“Magic,” he said because it was still kind of hilarious and because it was true.

“Yes, but how does that translate to a living situation? Is it like an organized church where he gets a stipend? Is he provided for?”

Tony was about to respond that he’d seen Stephen’s house and it wasn’t anything to dismiss before he actually thought about the question. 

“I have no idea,” he finally said, then jumped when Pepper slammed her hands on the table. 

“Tony!”

“What? I’m sorry, I never got weird magic-married before!”

Her chair groaned in an echo of her dissatisfaction with him as she got up. “I take it we’re not having a press conference to announce this just yet?”

“Yeah, no.”

She nodded, then got on the phone. “I’ll handle Stephen, you get something to eat.”

She started issuing commands into her phone while reaching into the fridge and shoving a box of pizza at Tony. 

Not for the first time, Tony was glad she was on his side.

*

Stephen had woken feeling much better-rested, if still weary. His talk with Wong had relieved him of so much stress, a huge weight being lifted from his shoulders.

But there was one person that he’d needed to talk to about all of this. One person who would’ve known exactly what to say. Who would’ve known how to make it better.

So, he made a portal into a little-used broom closet and slipped into his astral form. He drifted through the halls of Metro General until he reached the balcony where he’d last talked to her.

For a while he just stood there, taking in the view, allowing his thoughts to drift over to her. Finally, he spoke.

“I met a man,” he said, then regretted it. “No, that’s not exactly right. I met a minion of an evil intergalactic warlord then I fell in love with a man and bonded with him.”

He reached out a hand to his side, and tried to imagine feeling her hand in his one more time.

“He doesn’t love me back, but he wants to be a part of my life. And I have no idea how to go forward.” He swallowed and pushed his sadness away, trying to see a way out of the darkness he was in. “And I do need to move forward. One way or another, I can’t keep putting myself or him through this.”

He imagined her hand in his, tried to think of some wise thing she’d say that would humble him in an instant. 

“I suppose the only way forward is through. And we’ll see what happens when we get to the other side.”

He paused and had a thought. “Oh,” he said. “I also made a friend. A boy. He’s sweet, you’d like him. He wants to have family game night every other Tuesday.”

Closing his eyes, he let himself reach out to Tony. Tony who was humming steadily behind his heart, always moving. He let the feeling ground him in the present while his heart teetered on the precipice of grief. 

Finally, he knew he had to go back. “I miss you,” he said to the wind, and returned.

*

May waited patiently while Peter finished his second sandwich. He’d already demolished an entire large pizza by himself, then slept for a good eight hours. She didn’t care. She was just so happy to have him back.

“So?” she finally said as he was licking his fingers. “Aren’t you going to tell me what happened?”

“Of course,” Peter said. “I just don’t know where to start. So much happened in a really small amount of time. I kinda don’t know where to begin.”

That was fair, she thought to herself. She tried to make it easier for him, and said, “Well, why don’t you tell me the most important thing?”

His eyes lit up like the sun. He jumped onto the seat of his chair and smiled.

“How do you feel about family game night at Mr. Stark’s?”

*

The Cloak waited until Stephen sat himself in a chair in the library with a book before taking off to the liquor cabinet. It wasn’t exactly kept well-stocked these days, food being more important than spirits after all, but Stephen usually managed to steal away a bottle of the good stuff for his favorite relic.

The Cloak poured a shot of its favorite fabric softener and downed it, let the pleasant feel of it permeate its fabric down to the core. It’d had a rough few days. First, it had failed to keep its master on Earth, then it had to keep its master from flying out of a space ship.  
Then it had to help its master use an ancient spell of Master Oshtur’s, even though it knew the bond would only bring pain to all involved. 

It really had been a tough few days. And also, its master needed its help. Stephen loved Tony Stark. Tony Stark at least liked Stephen a little. Tony had caught him when the Cloak had tested him on Titan. That had to mean something.

It had to help its master. It couldn’t allow this moping to go on for much longer. Maybe the Spider child would be of help as well. 

It would do some thinking on it.

But first just one more shot of Downy. And maybe a dryer sheet before bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, the Cloak is seriously fun to write. It pops up a lot in the next chapter. And speaking of the next chapter, it's 13k. It went through beta this past week, but yeah it needed to be 13k so it's 13k. It's also a lot lighter than previous chapters, so if you were hoping for a lessening of angst— it's coming. Thanks to carrot on the ironstrange discord server for the idea about the Cloak’s poison.


	7. Wards and Allowances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so here's the 13k monster. It's also what I think of as the beginning of the middle. Thank you for to everyone who commented on the last chapter. I'm glad everyone seemed to enjoy the Cloak's characterization. It's going to have a good sized role in this story. Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta.

Stephen trudged through a portal to the Sanctum’s main room, tired, annoyed, and wanting to kick something. He hoped to have a moment to collect himself, but found Wong reinforcing the wards around the Hulk-shaped hole in the ceiling.

“How did it go?” Wong asked. He turned to Stephen, still casting a spell, then must have seen how absolutely done Stephen looked and stopped.

“Terribly,” Stephen said. “The elder sorcerers accepted my reasoning for the bonding and applauded the ‘quick-thinking’ in my solution for trapping Thanos.”

“They would,” Wong said darkly.

“Although I don’t know how ‘quick-thinking’ it really was, considering I had millions of chances at getting it right,” Stephen said offhand. He plunged into an armchair, groaning as he finally sat down after hours of inquisition. 

“But they’re absolutely terrified of who I’m bonded to,” Stephen said, and felt exhaustion seep into his bones. 

It had been an absolute wild few days since he’d returned. After resting and recovering, Stephen had finally made contact with the elder sorcerers of Kamar-Taj. The small governing body who had taken over after The Ancient One’s death had been desperate to speak with him, but Wong had held them at bay until he had rested and had his head on straight.

And speaking of having his head on straight…

Stephen had felt Tony get some rest around the same time he had when they’d first returned. But ever since then, he’d been going almost around the clock. The man was non-stop. His stress levels would peak, then slowly even out. With everything that had happened, Tony had to deal with more politics than Stephen would wish on his worst enemy.

But whatever it was he was doing, Stephen seriously considered sending the Cloak to help Tony get some rest.

The Cloak could be very comforting, Stephen had found. And it was very warm.

“Of course they are and they’re right to be,” Wong said, interrupting Stephen’s thoughts. “I like Stark, but he represents a very real threat to how our order has remained hidden for centuries.”

Stephen scoffed. “Not you, too.”  
“It’s the truth, unless you somehow convince him to lie to the UN and the Secretary of State.” Wong squinted at the hole in the roof, then nodded to himself looking pleased. “He’s probably already been asked about you. And it’s very likely someone took video of our fight in the streets.”

“They did,” Stephen said. “‘Tony Stark fights ugly alien guy with wizards and a rando.’ Like Bruce Banner isn’t an identifiable public figure.”

Wong came over to the armchair opposite Stephen and sat down. “Doctor Banner should be recognized for his ice cream alone. It’s the best.”

“It is,” Stephen said. He sighed and leaned back in his chair. He rubbed at the space on his chest where he could feel Tony. It had only been a few days, but Stephen missed him. He tried to reign the feeling in, but Stephen knew it would get worse as the days went on.

And aside from family game night, there was no real reason for the two of them to see each other again. Despite what Tony had said in the heat of the moment, Stephen wasn’t expecting much. On top of the fact that Tony hadn’t asked for any of this, he was still an incredibly busy man. A head of industry, a public figure, and an Avenger when those were much-needed and hard to come by.

“Did they discuss security?” Wong asked.

“Yes, they’re checking to see if any sorcerers have experience in carpentry. The wards we’ve cast should hold out the elements until then,” Stephen said, looking towards said Hulk-shaped hole in the roof.

“Not for the Sanctum. For Stark.”

Stephen frowned. “For Tony? You’ve seen him in action. He doesn’t really need extra security.”

Wong sighed. “Word is going to get out about this, Stephen, probably sooner rather than later. You know how sorcerers love to gossip. And it’s been centuries since anyone used this spell. Word has probably already reached the other Sanctums. Stark might have technology to keep out his type of villains but what about ours? How are the wards on his home?”

Stephen’s stomach dropped and a chill ran down his back. Tony had only had negative experiences with magic, he’d said. It was extremely doubtful he had any kind of wards on his house.

Houses.

_Properties._

“By the Vishanti,” Wong groaned. He’d seemed to realize what Stephen had at the same moment. “How many homes does he have?”

Stephen steepled his hands, preparing for another long night. “We’d better gather some novices. Looks like ward-casting is on the training schedule for the next few days.”

“Hmph,” Wong said, getting up. “Weeks is probably more like it.”

*

“Look Stark, we know that the first man is Doctor Stephen Strange,” Ross said, looking annoyed through a video call. “What we don’t know is the identity of the second man or what kind of enhanced they are.”

“Me either!” Tony said, pretending to ignore Ross for what was on his work table. “Very weird, said something about gaining their powers through magic mushrooms, had to go save a princess. Apparently, she wasn’t in this castle.”

“Stark—“

“Mr. Secretary, I’ll have to call you back,” Tony said, distracted by the storage box that was currently on his work table. He manipulated a robotic hand to remove the Reality Stone from the ugly glove then inserted it into the box. “I’ve got way more important things going on right now.”

“More important than national security, Mr. Stark?” asked Ross.

“Yup,” Tony said. “I’m currently protecting your reality, douchebag.” He gestured to Friday to cut the call then allowed himself to concentrate on the energy readings emanating from the now-closed box. With any hope, the quickly-constructed container would hide the energy readings from the stone well enough for Quill and company to get it somewhere safe.

Preferably far, far away from Earth. Earth had enough Infinity Stones as it was.

“National security,” Tony muttered under his breath. “I don’t know how anyone’s going to be able to think so small now.”

Tony took a swig from a bottle of water and asked, “What’s it looking like, Friday?”

“The container is successfully hiding the energy signature of the Reality Stone by 47%.”

Tony winced. It would have to be enough. He didn’t want to risk all the stones being on Earth any longer than they had to be. Plus, Quill had decided not to visit his old stomping ground and seemed eager to leave.

That wasn’t all Tony had to deal with. In addition to the United State government breathing down his neck for answers, the UN had come knocking on his door too. Turns out while Tony and Stephen had been fighting for their lives on Titan, Rogers and his crew had made a stand at Wakanda. 

Apparently, things had been looking bleak until Thor showed up. From what Tony gathered, the battle was just about over after that. The day was saved, and Earth got to see the Avengers in action again, doing what they did best.

Which meant there were already murmurs about Rogers and his party being pardoned and welcomed back with open arms. Not that Tony was surprised, but he hadn’t had time to sit down and figure out what he was going to do about that. He wasn’t even sure how he _felt_ about all that.

The Earth did need the Avengers, but who were the Avengers? Peter was an Avenger now, in Tony’s mind at least. He’d probably have to clear that with May. Thor was back, and Tony hadn’t had a chance to talk with him, but it sounded like he was Earth-bound for a while. Then there was Bruce, Rhodey, and the Vision.

And Stephen…

Was Stephen an Avenger now? Was Stephen everything now? Tony rubbed his chest and remembered the feeling of drawing on the bond on Titan, how he felt that together he and Stephen were invincible. That no enemy had a chance against the two of them. 

Tony shook his head. Drawing on the bond almost killed Stephen. That would definitely be a ‘the world is literally ending’ weapon. But Tony still liked the idea of Stephen being an Avenger. A new team, Tony reminded himself. A team he could trust, a team of people that would work together instead of tearing themselves apart. He needed Stephen to be a part of that.

“Friday, add talking to Stephen about joining the band to the list. Make it a priority.”

“Done,” she replied. 

“What’s a priority and is it really a priority?” Pepper asked as she descended the stairs. 

“Asking Stephen to be an Avenger,” Tony said, turning his chair towards her.

“Ah,” she said, smiling and waving around a folder. “I’m torn. On one hand, I’d like for him to be with you in a fight so you can be safe…”

“But?”

“But on the other I want him to be smart, and it’s really not a smart decision to join the Avengers.”

He smirked. “I’d say I’m insulted but you’re completely right.”

“I know I am,” Pepper said, smiling. “Your boy is actually the reason I’m down here. In addition to being your CEO and helping to handle the crisis that was your abduction and victorious return—“

“And I am eternally grateful for you, Pep,” he said, taking another drink of water.

“You’d better be. I finally got Stephen set up with a bank account and monthly automatic deposits. I also had your will adjusted so he’s taken care of in the event of your untimely death, set the Sanctum up for the same grocery delivery service as the Compound, set up a car service should he have need of it…”

“Probably won’t need it what with the,” Tony said while making the gesture for Stephen’s portals. “But good idea. You think of everything.”

“I know,” she said, her head tilted to the side and her tone suddenly sarcastic. “I can’t wait to have enough time to actually _meet him.”_

It was true, Tony thought and winced. He’d had been running her ragged for the past few days, almost as much as he had been doing to himself. And as odd as it was, Tony did miss Stephen. The sensation of never being truly alone was still odd, but nowhere near as intrusive as he’d feared.

When Stephen had first told him about the details of the bond, he’d felt like he’d be giving up his entire self. Yes, Stephen was with him always. And yeah, it still felt weird as hell, having someone literally behind his heart. But even though it still felt odd, more and more it was almost like having a friend over who was quietly reading a book in the corner: comforting and unobtrusive. 

Even Stephen’s heartache had begun to settle a little bit. Or maybe Tony was just getting used to it. Or maybe Stephen was.

One of those.

“Things aren’t going to settle down any time soon, but we’ll see. Is it weird that I kinda miss him?”

Pepper smiled and had a hopeful look in her eyes. “No, Tony. That’s a good thing.”

Tony wasn’t sure what to think about it, but took Pepper’s word for it.

“So,” she said, gesturing to a folder she’d brought with her. “Where am I sending this? Where does he live?”

“Oh, uh…Friday? Can you get the address of the house in the Village we portaled to that one time?”

“Navigation cut out when you stepped through the portal. I can give you an approximate location based on landmarks recorded after you stepped away from Doctor Strange’s house, but I’m unable to find the exact location.”

“Ugh,” Tony groaned. “Magic. Okay, how about just look for a listing. Can’t be too many Stephen Stranges in New York.”

Friday was quiet for a moment, even though it should have taken her less than a second to find Stephen’s listing. “There’s no listing for a Stephen Strange in the greater New York area. The last listing was for a penthouse in Manhattan, but that was several years ago.”

Tony drummed his fingers on the table. It had been a challenge, but he had not googled Stephen’s name the way Pepper had a few days ago. It had been tempting, _so, so tempting_ , but he hadn’t. He’d a feeling the very first google search would have been an explanation about the state of Stephen’s hands. 

It was Stephen’s story to tell. Stephen didn’t deserve Tony finding out behind his back. He deserved to tell that story to Tony. Or not. But it was his decision.

“How about his phone number, Fri? Just call him and Pepper can have a delivery guy knock on a few doors. We’ll pay him extra,” he said to Pepper, and she nodded.

“There’s no cell phone number for Stephen Strange, listed or unlisted.”

Tony’s brain short-circuited. He knew his mouth had dropped straight open, but he was too shocked to care. 

“He doesn’t have a **PHONE?!”**

*

The hot water had the dual benefit of helping his throbbing hands and also clearing his sinuses. Stephen had woken in the morning to aching hands and a frantic, busy Tony. He’d gone downstairs, where Wong took a good look at him and knew he’d be mostly useless for at least the morning and probably the rest of the day as well. The Cloak had helped him shave and wash, magic helped him dress, and now he stood at the sink with his hands in the hot water.

He hoped he was keeping himself calm enough not to alarm Tony. He couldn’t feel Stephen’s pain, but he could feel Stephen’s despair. And there was nothing worse than waking up to pain so bad he needed assistance with basic care.

He heard the doorbell ring from his ensuite but ignored it. Wong was working in the library on adapting traditional wards for the Compound. He could get the door.

“Stephen!” Wong cried out a moment later.

“No,” Stephen groaned, though he knew Wong couldn’t hear him. “Not today, not today, not today…” Maybe if he was really quiet Wong would just shut up.

“Stephen,” Wong said a moment later, this time from his bedroom door. “There’s a package for you.”

“A—what? Package?” Stephen frowned. The wards around the Sanctum made them difficult but not impossible to find, and they’d never let anyone in before. “From who? And how did they find me?”

“I have no idea,” Wong said straight-faced. “Have you met anyone recently with almost unlimited resources so he could pay a delivery person to knock on the door of every house on this block and ask for a Doctor Stephen Strange?”

“Motherfucker,” he muttered. The Cloak jerked in feigned shock. “Oh, shut up.”

“Stephen,” Wong said, gravely enough for Stephen to take notice. “It requires your signature.”

“Damn,” Stephen whispered. “This is going to hurt,” he said, mostly to the Cloak. The Cloak patted his face and Stephen smiled softly. “Something tells me you know what this is like.” The Cloak was far too helpful to not understand pain. “What happened? Have you been ripped before?”

The Cloak hovered for a moment then nodded its collar. Stephen felt his heart ache a bit for his friend, and appreciated its help with his care even more. It wrapped around Stephen’s wrists as he took them out of the water. 

“No need to get yourself all wet. It’s alright.” He smiled and said, “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

The Cloak seemed to vibrate with happiness at that. Stephen smiled and resigned himself to awkwardness. 

“I’m coming,” he said, then headed downstairs. 

There was a delivery person at the door with a sleek black box. Stephen had to admit he was curious, even if he was dreading the hand-off and signature.

“Package for you, Doctor Strange,” the lady said. Stephen carefully took the box from her hands and handed it to Wong. The Cloak lay dormant to not alarm the lady who was only trying to deliver a package. “Sign please,” she said, then handed him a heavy tablet.

“Um,” he said, looking at how bulky that tablet was. It had a case that looked like it could survive a war zone. What was a case like that doing in New—on second thought, it made complete sense. But there was no way Stephen would be able to hold it in one hand while signing with the other. 

“Here,” Wong said, and held the tablet for him. 

“Thank you,” he said, softly. Bad days were usually bad because of the pain, from feeling useless, and knowing it wouldn’t get any better. This bad day now had added humiliation. Fun.

Stephen fumbled with the stylus, his hands aching and shaking far worse than what was normal for him. He bit his lip and gripped as hard as he could and wrote his name. 

Not an X. His full name. 

It looked horrible. Hardly better than the days when he was struggling through physical therapy, but he was still able to do it.

_Fear_

_Concern_

_Comfort_

That last emotion coming from Tony was surprising, but Stephen still welcomed it. It wasn’t coming through very clearly, but it felt friendly and kind. Stephen flexed his fingers and decided to take victories in any way he could today. He closed his eyes and tried to send reassurance to Tony through their bond. 

_I’m alright._

“Thank you, sirs,” the delivery lady said. “Have a good day.”

“Thank you,” Wong said to her, then closed the door when she left. “Are you alright? Do you want me to open this for you?”

“Yes, please,” Stephen said, letting the Cloak wrap his wrists in its fabric with just the right amount of pressure to ease the ache. He heard Wong open the black box, and asked, “What is it?”

“It’s—I have no idea. It’s far too…beautiful for me to judge its merit.”

“Why, Wong, I had no idea you could feel that way about…” Stephen drifted off as he finally took in what was in the box. It was a slim piece of glass, so sleek and smooth Stephen wasn’t entirely sure what it was. It could be…

“Is that a phone?” Stephen asked. The Cloak gripped his wrists tighter and helped him to take the phone from Wong’s hands. 

As soon as Stephen’s fingers touched the screen, it turned on. “Good afternoon, Doctor Strange,” it said, then began its process of booting. Once it had finished, Stephen realized he was holding what must be the newest, state-of-the-art Starkphone. 

“What is that?” Wong asked. “Is it friend or foe?”

“It’s come to ask for your first born,” Stephen said, carefully examining the thin piece of glass.

“Tell it to stay out of my library and we’re fine.”

Stephen thumbed through a few screens, careful not to drop it, and looking for confirmation that he didn’t really need and yet…

**Contacts: Savior of the Known Universe, A Random Spider from Queens, Pepper Potts**

Stephen rolled his eyes and laughed. Of course Tony would give him a ridiculously top of the line phone. Stephen no longer kept up with technology trends, but he was betting this line wasn’t even out yet. 

“Careful not to bleed on it,” Wong said. “It might try to ask you riddles.”

Stephen laughed over the sound of the doorbell ringing again. Just as he was about to put the phone back in the box, his hands spasmed, and he dropped it on the floor. His heart dropped somewhere to his feet. That phone looked like it was made of glass and it hadn’t had a case.

And it had been a gift from Tony…

“Excuse me, is Doctor Stephen Strange at home?” asked the man at the door. He sounded like he had business to conduct that did not involve dropping off a package. Stephen stifled a groan and resigned himself to whatever fresh hell was calling now.

“Doctor Strange,” the man greeted Stephen, smiling and extending a hand. Stephen had been in this situation before. He found it better to appear extremely rude than shake someone’s hand with all the strength of an exceptionally limp noodle and inspire pity.

“Good afternoon,” Stephen said, keeping his hands to his side. “How may I help you?”

“I just have a few documents for you to sign and then I’ll be out of your hair.” The man took out a folder and flipped a few pages and then held out a pen. “Everything is completely set up, you don’t have to do a thing but sign.”

“What’s set up?” Stephen asked, frowning. “What exactly is it that you want me to sign?”

“Doctor Strange?” asked another man at the door, this one wearing a hard hat. “We’ve been told to come evaluate floor and ceiling damage for this home.”

“Oh, thank God you bonded rich, Stephen,” Wong said. He smiled and gestured the workmen inside. “This way, sir. I’ll show you the damage.”

“Busy day,” the man in the suit said. “Well I’ll let you get to it. If you’ll just sign here and here,” he said, thrusting a pen into Stephen’s hand. The Cloak feigned being a normal cloak so there was no help coming. Just him, his aching, shaking hands, and these papers he had to sign. 

“What exactly am I signing?” Stephen asked, all of his strength going into not dropping this pen.

“This is the paperwork from Mr. Stark, Doctor.”

He felt Tony’s concern for him growing in the back of his heart, but he ignored it. This was his mountain to climb and he would climb it. He held the pen in a loose grip, then dropped it.  
“Sorry,” he muttered, his face burning. Picking it up again, he tried to readjust his grip but that didn’t help. Finally, he held the pen with two hands and managed to sign a simple ‘SS.’ At least it wasn’t an X.

“Thank you, sir,” the suit said, then—like he was truly regretful—said, “and now these three.”

Stephen held back his groan, but only just. He could do this. Using one hand to steady the other, he slowly but surely signed a double S three times. It was better than nothing.

“Thank you, Doctor Strange! I’m sorry if I caused any difficulty. Here are your copies. If you have any questions, my card is in the folder. Have a good day!”

“Yes, thank you,” Stephen said, still in a pain-filled daze. The Cloak slipped off Stephen’s shoulders as soon as the man was gone and picked up the phone. It didn’t have a scratch on it. It held the phone up for Stephen to see, then took the folder from him. 

“Well, that was awful. What was I thinking?” Stephen said, realizing what had just happened. “Wait a minute. What did i just sign?”

The Cloak took the folder over to a small table in the library and opened it up to the first document. It had a debit card with his name on it. Stephen frowned then sat down to read, the Cloak making an excellent page turner. 

He read the first page, then the second, becoming more and more alarmed and angry. By the time he got to the last page, he was enraged. 

**“I HAVE AN ALLOWANCE?!”**

*

“Whoa!” Tony yelped, feeling a spike of anger from Stephen from out of nowhere. “Damn, Doc,” he muttered to himself. “Calm down before you have an aneurism.” Whatever was upsetting Stephen would have to wait. Tony needed to check one very big, reality-threatening box off his list.

He handled the specially-made box with the Reality Stone hiding inside for a moment, then gave it to Quill. Tony would have loved to have been able to show Quill a hero’s return, but it just hadn’t been possible. Even with Pepper helping, Tony was getting three hours of sleep a night with no end in sight. He hadn’t seen Peter in days.

And he found himself missing Stephen more and more.

“Well I’d say this has been fun and we should do it again some time, but it’s actually been terrible,” Quill said, tucking _the Reality Stone_ under his armpit like a football.

“Come back sometime,” Tony said, finding he meant it. Quill didn’t deserve to have only sad, tragic memories of his home. Tony knew exactly what that was like, and he didn’t wish it on anyone. “We’ll see Earth in style, live it up. Any time. Just make sure to leave that,” he said, gesturing to the Reality Stone, “in a hole in the ground somewhere.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about that,” Quill said. “We’re going to Xandar first, see what’s left and if they’re still the best ones to keep this. If not, there are a couple options. It’ll be safe, Stark. I promise.”

“Good,” Tony said, and was about to give Quill a pat on the back and say goodbye when movement towards the far end of the Compound caught his eye. “What the hell?” he muttered, then didn’t hesitate. He activated the suit and took off.

A few seconds later he was on the ground, his gauntlet aimed at three young people, all wearing ugly, off-white robes that kinda looked like…

“Um,” he said, and took in what he guessed were three baby wizards and recalled the suit. He turned and saw Quill and Drax running up behind him. “Can I help you?”

The baby wizards—two women and a young man—looked like they were about to explode from barely contained-excitement. 

“By the Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth!” cried one.

“It’s him,” said another.

“I think I’m going to faint,” said the last one.

“No, no fainting!” Tony said, holding up a hand. “There is no fainting allowed on this property and you’re already trespassing,” Tony said. He’d grown completely used to the fangirling—fanpersoning—over the years and knew how to gently handle mega-fans. What he didn’t know was why they were here.

“Okay,” he said, turning on his patented Tony Stark smile. “I’m more than happy to answer any questions you have, take a picture, sign some stuff if you just answer one question: what are you doing here?”

The first wizard quickly answered, almost shouting, “We’re here to place wards around the Compound! May we ask some questions now?”

Tony frowned, his face twisting in confusion. “Um, what—“

Then the three baby wizards seemed to _explode_.

“What is it like being bonded to Doctor Strange?”

“Is it true you can hear each other’s thoughts?”

“Is it like the Vulcan mind meld in Star Trek?”

“If I poke you in the side can he feel it?”

“Does he make butterflies when he sneezes?”

“Did you really have to shed your blood on the Cloak of Levitation?”

“If he’s snoring at his house will it wake you up?”

“Can you taste it when he’s eating ice cream?”

“Is it true he’s actually a vampire, and that’s how he mastered magic so quickly?”

“Does he use magic to shave?”

“Is the Cloak really alive or is he just messing with us?”

“Oh,” Quill said, shoulders shaking with laughter. “This is the best thing ever. Seriously, you weirdos could not have given me a better going away present. Thank you, weirdos. Thank you so much.”

The baby wizards glared at Quill for a moment before one of them created a portal below Quill’s feet, dropping him into darkness.

“Is there anyone else bothering you, Mr. Stark?” one of the lady wizards asked, eyeing up Drax.

“I would like to know what is a Vulcan and how does it meld to a mind? Is there a forge involved?” Drax asked.

“Okay, where did he go?” Tony asked, gesturing to where Quill stood in a panic. “He had something incredibly important with him. Bring him back! Now!”

The wizard nodded and quickly created another portal, this one dropping Quill onto the ground. “Where the hell did I go just now?” he shouted, cradling the Reality Stone to his chest. “And why were there so many frogs?”

“You didn’t touch any of them, did you?” the wizard asked.

Quill was silent for a moment then said, “…no?”

“Okay, time out,” Tony said, needing to gain control over this situation. “You didn’t answer my question. Why are you here? Did Stephen send you?”

“Yes, Mr. Stark. Doctor Strange sent us to ward the Compound,” the guy wizard said, looking at Tony like he thought it odd he had to repeat himself. 

“Aww,” Quill said, obviously not having learnt his lesson. “Wifey sent a present.”

The wizards lifted their hands in one motion and Tony put his arm out to catch them. “No! Not again, please. No magic on the lawn.”

“But sir, Doctor Strange sent us to see to the wards.”

“Okay, I don’t know what wards are, but I promise I don’t need them. So thank you very much, but if you could please—“

Tony was cut off by _yet another_ portal opening on his lawn. “Oh, more wizards,” he muttered, but held his breath, then was disappointed when Wong came out.

The resting bitch face was strong today. “What’s going on here?” he asked the baby wizards. “Why are you bothering Doctor Strange’s bondmate and not seeing to the wards as instructed?”

“Wong, I have no idea what’s going on, but it’s really pissing me off,” Tony said. “All I know is there’s a lot of magic happening, and I’m not okay with it!”

The young wizards looked confused and Wong shooed them through the portal. “Go back to Kamar-Taj. I will look over your work later.” He waited until the portal closed before he turned back to Tony. 

“Stark,” Wong said. “I’m sorry we didn’t speak to you before sending the novices, but time was of the essence. Stephen is a very powerful sorcerer and has made a very big name for himself in our world. His legend will only grow as word spreads about how he helped defeat Thanos. Especially because he used an ancient bonding ritual not used for centuries to do so.”

Tony forced himself to stop before he snapped at Wong that he didn’t want any magic at his Compound at all. Not now that Wanda was finally gone. But that wasn’t true anymore because magic meant Stephen.

And he very much wanted Stephen to visit the compound.

“Look around, Wong,” Tony said. “This place is better protected than the Pentagon. We’re all fine here.”

“Not against a magical threat. Stephen mentioned you’d had a bad experience with magic before. I can assure you this is only a spell of protection.”

Tony lowered his eyes and kicked at the ground, completely forgetting that Quill was still behind him. “How is he? Is he—“

Wong didn’t meet his eyes when he said, “He is fine. You should have seen the colors his face turned when he discovered you’d given him an allowance. It’s been the best part of my day.”

Tony grunted. He hadn’t thought of it like that. He didn’t mean to insult Stephen…

“Stark. Tony,” Wong said softly. “I know why you did what you did. You want to take care of him in the way you know how. Let Stephen take care of you in return. He doesn’t have a vast fortune, but he can protect you from any magic threat that may come. And it’s very likely they will.”

Tony really hadn’t thought of any of that. He knew magic was real, and he knew he should protect himself from it and yet for some reason he’d willfully buried his head in the sand years ago and kept it there instead of building a defense like he would against any other threat. 

And here was Stephen, stepping up and taking care of him. Like they were a team. He reached out to the little butterfly in his chest.

“Yeah, fine, but can you do it?” Tony asked. “I could do without the peanut gallery asking me if Stephen uses magic to shave.”

Wong nodded then stopped and seemed to consider Tony. Finally, after what looked like an internal debate, he said, “He doesn’t. The Cloak does it for him if he is unable.”

Tony looked at Wong thoughtfully, and thought about Stephen’s hands. 

“How do you think he’s able to get it so precise with his hands being the way they are?”

Tony clenched his jaw and mentally kicked himself. Of all the things to say, why had he chosen that? With that awful sentence hanging mid-air, Wong left and began casting spells at Tony’s walls.

“Aside from the weird frog world, this has been interesting, Stark,” Quill said. “Tell the Missus I said bye. We’ll see you around.”

Tony watched quietly as Quill and Drax boarded the Benetar and took off. He turned and watched Wong casting spells along another set of walls before he went inside, his thoughts on Stephen and his hands.

*

A few days later, Stephen was running his fingers along a small amethyst and considering what Tony had told him about his previous run-ins with magic. Of course he had issues with it, if his experiences had all been negative. To add to that, he was now soul-bonded to Stephen. It was no wonder he’d wanted to send away the novices who were just trying to cast protective wards.

Stephen didn’t want to tread carelessly, but he couldn’t help thinking about that off-handed comment Tony had made about a witch messing with his mind. If he was willing to accept Stephen’s magic, there was definitely something he could do about that.

For now, he was working on a very specific ward that would protect not only Tony, but all in Tony’s home from mental magical attacks. Creating new spells took far more patience than learning old ones. He turned his hand counter-clockwise and watched as the gold mandala twisted to just a little closer to what it needed to be.

He might also be mentally preparing to have an argument with Tony about his so-called allowance. Yes, they really needed the money, and yes, Tony was a billionaire that really wouldn’t feel the pinch, and yes, they also really needed the roof and floor repaired, but…

Stephen sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. There was a but in there somewhere.

The doorbell ran, and Wong—with a bit too much excitement, Stephen thought—went to answer it.

“Delivery for Doctor Strange from Mr. Stark,” the delivery person said. 

From Stephen’s view in the living room, he couldn’t make out what the package was. He _could_ see Wong get excited and then gesture the delivery person into the Sanctum. 

“Yes, please. This way, sir.”

Stephen’s mouth dropped open. The size of that box could only hold…

“Mr. Stark also paid for removal and disposal of your old refrigerator and freezer. Set up and removal shouldn’t take too long.”

“Excellent. Thank you,” Wong said, smiling.

Stephen remembered the but now. He still had some pride, damn it!

“Wong!” Stephen hissed. “What the hell?”

“He asked if there was anything else we needed,” Wong said, shrugging. “The other day when I went to finish up with the wards. What did you want me to do? Not get a new refrigerator?”

“I cannot believe you!”

“What is there to believe? Our ice cream was either melty or suffered freezer burn. Now we no longer have to suffer.”

Stephen felt a migraine coming on.

“Excuse me, sir!” cried a voice from the door. “Grocery delivery!”

“That’s it,” Stephen said, tempted to portal to the Compound _right now_ and walk right up to Tony and tell him he didn’t need to be _taken care of_ like a child.

“Stephen,” Wong said warily. “What are you doing?” He watched as Stephen got his sling ring, and the Cloak flew to his shoulders. “Stephen, he’s trying to take care of you in the only way he knows how. He is your bondmate—Stephen!”

Stephen quickly closed the portal and stepped onto the lawn of the Compound. It was his first time actually seeing it, and he had to admit it was impressive. His temper was slightly mitigated by seeing Tony’s home so close up. It was huge but it looked sturdy, like a fortress. Somewhere he could make a stand. That was obviously Tony’s intention. 

He began walking towards the front path when he felt a slight deviation with the wards. It was like running his hand over silk only to find a small tear in the fabric. Slowly, he examined the wards and felt… It was like tiny pin pricks, very small weak spots in the armor around the Compound. 

Stephen felt his anger melt away in the face of real need. Where Tony had been uncomfortable accepting magical help, Stephen was uncomfortable accepting monetary help. 

He tapped his foot at the Compound in dissatisfaction. There was a difference though. There was. He’d find it in a moment, but he knew it was there. 

Stephen sighed and ran his hands over the wards again. He knew this couldn’t wait any longer. He needed to cast these modified spells now. He summoned the Shields of Seraphim and got to work.

*

Tony had been on conference calls with UN officials all day and now he was talking to the head honcho. This time instead of Avengers-related business, he was dealing with Thor business. Thor would be leaving Earth soon, care of his new magic axe, but only long enough to gather what remained of his people, find a safe space to deposit the Space Stone, and take the Soul Stone back to a planet Nebula had called Vormir. That would leave the Power, Mind, and Time Stones on Earth for the time being. 

That was more than enough, thought Tony.

“Look, Mr. Secretary General, these people are going to be refugees. And refugees deserve basic human rights, yes even if they aren’t exactly human.”

“Of course, Mr. Stark,” said the Secretary General. “No one is arguing against offering asylum. But negotiations are still happening with Norway about a permanent settlement.”

“You’d think they’d be eager to gain a couple hundred new neighbors, what with one of them being their literal thunder god.”

The Secretary General sighed. “It’s a great deal of negotiation, but we should have all this settled by the time Thor returns with his people. Now onto the matter of the Rogue Avengers—“

Tony felt a great swell of pride from Stephen, like he’d done something very difficult and he’d done it well. He rubbed the spot under his chest and wondered. 

“Yeah, I’m gonna stop you right there, Mr. Secretary. I have about twenty other items on my list before I’ll be prepared to discuss Rogers and his merry band of fugitives.”

“Fine,” The Secretary General said. And Tony heard voices murmuring in the background. “I’d like to address the two individuals who helped you when New York was attacked.”

Tony’s heart dropped somewhere beneath his feet. As far as Tony knew, the outside world still had no idea about the existence of Stephen’s order, and Tony wasn’t going to be the one that outed them. “What was that, Mr. Secretary General? Ssstttt…sorry…breaking up. Really…connection.”

The Secretary General groaned. “You can’t put this off forever, Mr. Stark.”

“Can’t…you,” Tony said, mimicking static.

“Until next time…Goodbye, Stark,” the Secretary sighed.

Relieved, Tony cut the connection and ran a hand over his face. He needed to talk to Stephen. The list of things they needed to talk about was growing by the day. But right now he was wondering at the feeling of satisfaction he was getting from Stephen through their bond.

“Anything weird going on, Friday?” Tony asked. He had a feeling but God, he was unused to this magic stuff. He had no idea what this feeling meant.

“Doctor Strange is on the back lawn. There were a lot of the gold-toned mandalas I’ve seen him cast before, but this one was very large and eventually encompassed the entire Compound.”

“What? He did—“ Tony pulled out his cell phone. No messages. He’d given the phone to Stephen and was waiting for him to make the first text. He hadn’t yet and Tony was beginning to wonder if he ever would. 

“Is he still there?” Tony asked.

“Yes, boss.”

Tony ran to the elevator and then bounced on his heels as it ascended to the ground level. Then he ran to the front doors. He wasn’t sure why he was running. Yes, he wanted to know what Stephen was doing to his house, but he was positive that whatever it was, it was a good thing. Maybe another ward like what Wong and the baby wizards were casting.

All that was true, but Tony realized it was also true that he really just wanted to see Stephen. The past few days had been rough, and feeling Stephen behind his heart had been both odd and comforting. And he had to admit, he missed his friend. He missed his team mate.

He finally made it to the lawn but didn’t see Stephen anywhere.

“Friday?” he asked.

“Sorry, he just left.”

“It’s okay, baby girl. I just…wanted to say hi. Nothing important.” That wasn’t true at all. Tony took a moment and walked along the perimeter of the Compound, wanting to see if there was any physical evidence of the spell Stephen had cast.

There, towards the back walls of the Compound, was something that made Tony smile.

Little blue butterflies were fluttering around, directionless. He watched them dance in the air, happily, with no little butterfly agenda. It was the most precious evidence of Stephen having visited his home he could ask for.

“Damn,” he said to himself. “There are no plants on this side. Well, come on, fellas. I know you’re magic, but you probably need food, right? There are some good flowers over this way.”

Tony wasn’t sure if the butterflies understood English, but they eventually did follow him to where there was honeysuckle and rose bushes. He watched the butterflies tuck in and laughed to himself.

Tony Stark: butterfly wrangler.

*

Stephen was deep in concentration, adding a few final protection spells to the amulet he’d finally decided to create for Tony, when the doorbell rang. 

_No,_ he thought and regretted letting spell fatigue get the best of him the other day. He should have talked to Tony after he’d cast the final ward. _No, not today. I am completely done with being a kept man. What next, a gold-plated toilet?”_

“Stephen?” Wong said at the doorway to the library, just after Stephen cast the last spell. “There’s someone here for you.”

“Whatever it is, Wong, I’m sure you can deal with it. Did Stark send a circus? Trained acrobats?” Stephen asked snidely.

“No, Stephen, I believe they are here concerning you.” Wong walked further into the library and sat in the chair opposite. “Stephen, I believe this is one you may want to consider.”

Stephen frowned and resigned himself to the inevitable. He went to greet the woman who was standing in the living room waiting for him.

“Doctor Strange? My name is Dembe. I’m here to talk with you about any kind of accessibility issues you may have with your home.”

Stephen’s face was close to setting itself on fire. He couldn’t help how his jaw clenched and his fists weakly twisted as he burned with shame and anger. Who did Tony think he was? And how had he known about any of this?

Stephen stood there, hands hiding behind the Cloak, and wanted to slap himself. Of course Tony knew. Tony had access to anything he wanted. He must have looked up his medical records, probably his entire file. He’d probably records of all the surgeries.

He felt exposed and betrayed. Like nothing was his own anymore.

_Concern_

_Nervousness_

_Comfort_

“No, go away,” Stephen whispered. 

“I’m sorry?” Dembe asked, frowning.

Stephen cleared this throat and reminded himself that this woman was only trying to do her job. “I don’t know what you mean. Yes, I have problems with my hands but it’s mostly fine motor control. Signing my name, shaving, dropping things. That sort of thing. I don’t think any construction needs to be done to the house on my behalf. The house I’ve lived in _for some time_ , I might add.”

Dembe had taken out a notepad and was making notes. “What about doorknobs? Motion sensors on the sinks? A dispenser for your shampoo, soap, toothpaste to make it easier on your hands?”

Stephen sat there, shocked speechless. He hadn’t considered any of that.

“If we can make daily struggles a little easier it may allow more time and energy to physical therapy. That way we can build up your hand strength. Now, what kind of preventative measures are you taking for avoiding worse flare-ups? Do you have a whirlpool? Are you still attending physical therapy sessions?”

“He isn’t doing any of that,” Wong said from the doorway. “And yes, heat helps his hands.”

Dembe made a note of that as well. “Well, I have quite a bit to get started with. Can you think of anything else, Doctor Strange?”

Stephen knew Tony was doing this to be kind. He knew it when he got the allowance, when the holes in the roof and stairs were fixed, when he’d been given a phone that looked like it belonged in a sci-fi film.

But this was too far. Tony hadn’t even asked him about his hands, and Stephen didn’t know how he would have answered any of his questions in the first place. This felt intrusive in the worst way, and the idea of changing the Sanctum for his own disability felt wrong.

“No, I can’t. Please excuse me,” Stephen said and quickly left the living room. He heard Wong making his apologies to Dembe, but Stephen barely heard them. He quickly called the Cloak to him and made a portal for the Compound. He’d been putting this off long enough.

This time he portaled right in front of the front door. He raised a hand to knock, but the door opened for him automatically. 

“Good evening, Doctor Strange.” Stephen recognized Friday, Tony’s AI. She’d know where he could find Tony.

“Hello, Friday. Could you please tell me where Tony is?”

“He’s in New York addressing the UN General Assembly,” a voice said from another doorway. There, silhouetted by light and shadow, stood a beautiful woman in a well-cut white suit. Her hair was strawberry blonde and pulled into a tight ponytail. Her lips were blood red.

_Oh, no…_

“Pepper Potts,” he said, and he tried to make it sound more like a greeting between equals and not like he was suddenly shaking in his boots. He’d had no intention of meeting Tony’s ex. He had no idea what he had told her about their bond or the status of their relationship, besides maybe that they were currently allies. He deliberately kept his feet on the ground, denying his desire to step back.

“Stephen Strange,” Pepper said, walking slowly towards him. She came up so close and Stephen hadn’t felt this level of fear when he was fighting Thanos.

“You’re much cuter in person,” Pepper said, smiling.

“What?” 

Then she hugged him.

“Oh, it’s so good to meet you, finally! I’ve been telling Tony that I wanted to meet you so badly, but he honestly has been ridiculously busy since you got back. I’ve been busy too, I was actually in the middle of something, but I’m so glad you finally came over. Let me put on a pot of coffee and finish up. Then we can talk!”

_”What just happened?”_

“Sure…” Stephen said, completely thrown. “Um…thank you.”

“Please have a seat. I’ll just be a minute.” Then she walked off into another room, leaving Stephen alone.

“Well, this was unexpected,” Stephen muttered to the Cloak. “Think it’s safe to just leave? I have a feeling she could come after both of us.”

The Cloak shuddered and Stephen had his answer. He looked around and sat down on one of two chairs facing each other in a large room off the entryway. His anger and humiliation had waned somewhat but not completely, not this time. What Tony had done this time was too much, and he had to make that clear. No amount of probably really good coffee from beautiful, frightening women could change that.

“Here we are,” Pepper said, and set down a tray with a pot of coffee, two mugs, and a bowl of sugar and little jug of cream. “I wasn’t sure how you took yours, so I brought everything.”

“Thank you,” he said, very grateful that today was a day he could handle a pot of coffee. He carefully poured for himself and then for her. She glanced at his hands but didn’t say anything, just smiled and thanked him.

For a moment they sat there in silence. It was only a moment, but in that moment Stephen had a mini-breakdown. What had Tony told her about Stephen? Were Tony and Pepper still together? The papers had said they’d broken up years ago, but when did reporters get things right? Did she hate Stephen for being Tony’s bondmate? Was all this just to tell him that any feelings he might have for Tony were laughable, that he’d probably never even see Tony again?

“So, how are you?” she asked, breaking the silence. “It took a few days, but I finally got the entire story out of Tony. He said you were hurt on the way to Titan. But you look like you’ve recovered well,” she said, a kind smile on her face and hope in her tone.

Stephen put his mug of coffee down. He had no idea what was expected of him in this situation. He answered as if he was on auto-pilot. “Yes, it was very…unpleasant. Luckily for me, Tony and Peter followed me onto the ship. The situation would have gone very different for everyone if they hadn’t.”

“I’m glad they did. I was terrified when I found out Tony left on that ship. I always thought I’d lose him to some world-ending threat some day. I was so relieved when he came back. And from what he told me, he gained something on Titan.” She smiled into her mug and looked at Stephen over the rim.

“Oh, ha,” Stephen stuttered and had no idea how to respond to that. “Yes, I um—I’m not sure what he told you, but yes, I, um—had to make a quick decision on—“ He wasn’t cut out for this kind of pressure. Weird alien torture devices, allowing himself to be killed hundreds of times by demons, magical fights taking place on strange new worlds… 

That he could handle. Facing down the ex-girlfriend of the man he was in love with? Stephen mentally reviewed if there was a spell to help him melt into the floor.

“Stephen?” Pepper asked. “Are you alright?”

“Yes?” Stephen croaked. “I’m not sure what, um, what Tony told you. About what happened on Titan.”

“He told me you got married.” She sipped her coffee.

Stephen exhaled and gripped the arms of the chair as hard as he could. Of course Tony did, _of course_ he told Pepper Potts they’d gotten _married_.

“Bonded,” he said first. “We bonded our souls on Titan.”

She nodded. “He said something like that. And it’s permanent.” 

“Yes,” he said.

“And you’re in love with him,” she said, plainly.

Maybe by some miracle the Cloak would take it upon itself to whisk Stephen away from here. To some nice hole in the ground where he could just live forever.

“I’m not, by the way,” Pepper said, putting her coffee down.

“What?” Stephen said, and even he could hear how flustered he sounded.

“In love with him. I’m sorry, you just looked like you were about to pass out. I didn’t mean to startle you. I just believe in getting to the point.”

“Yes, I can see that,” Stephen said, and he was not hyperventilating but the Cloak started to fan him anyway.

“Oh, hello,” Pepper said to the Cloak. “Tony mentioned you had an AI. Hi, I’m Pepper. I’m sorry I didn’t introduce myself sooner.”

The Cloak extended an edge of its fabric towards Pepper and she extended a hand. It gently slid the fabric over her palm in way of greeting.

“Pleased to meet you,” she said, smiling.

“Pepper Potts, meet the Cloak of Levitation,” Stephen said, still trying to get his breath back. “It’s not exactly an AI. It’s an ancient magical relic that’s chosen me as its master.”

“It’s sweet,” Pepper said. “And you both have something that takes care of you. I’m glad.”

“Ms. Potts—“

“Pepper.”

“Pepper,” Stephen said, and he actually had no idea how to have this conversation. “The bonding, it’s not… The bonding is not meant to be about love. It’s a spell to be used in battle. While on Titan, Tony was able to access my full power. That’s how we could defeat Thanos. My…feelings for him have nothing to do with the bond. And I would never try to get in Tony’s way. I wouldn’t do that to him.”

Pepper smiled and sighed. “Tony and I were over a long time ago, Stephen. That’s why I brought it up.”

Stephen absolutely hated that a little thrill of hope went through him at that. There was no reason to hope. Regardless of how Tony felt about Pepper or anyone else, he didn’t feel that way towards Stephen. “People get back together. It happens all the time.”

“Not this time,” she said.

He closed his eyes for a moment, willing himself back together. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because the first thing I asked Tony when he told me what happened was what kind of man you were. You know what he said?”

Stephen shook his head.

“He said you were a good one. A good man that loves him and can actually take part in his crazy life. From what he’s told me and from what I can tell from you, you might be perfect for him.”

Stephen felt his heart sink and he laughed uncomfortably. “He doesn’t feel that way about me.”

“He will,” she said, picking up her mug. “Give him time. Let him get to know you. He’s missed you. He told me so.”

Stephen perked up at that. “He has?”

She nodded. “He even ran out to find you when you came by the other day. I watched the footage. Did you leave butterflies on the property?”

“Um,” he said, not exactly sure how to explain.

“Well, if you need them back, Tony took them to the honeysuckle out back. They’ve been hanging out around there for the past few days.”

Tony was taking care of his butterflies. What was happening? Stephen closed his eyes, confused and with no idea how to process any of this. “Why are you telling me this?”

She sank back in her chair and put her elbow on the arm, her chin in the palm of her hand. “Because I want him to be happy. And I think you could help him with that.”

“He really pissed me off today,” Stephen said, and his eyes went wide, and the Cloak slapped its edge onto his mouth. He didn’t mean to say that.

“Oh, God.” Her mug clattered as it hit the coffee table. “What did he do? How is he able to screw up while he’s addressing the UN?” Pepper asked. She seemed annoyed but not at Stephen.

“He sent—“ He cut himself off, not sure why he was telling her this. He’d nearly forgotten his anger once they’d started talking, but it came back quickly now. He couldn’t let this pass, and Pepper seemed like someone he could confide in. 

“He sent an _accessibility specialist_ over to the Sanctum. Without discussing it with me.”

Pepper’s eyes went wide. 

“I understand that he meant well, but… You have to understand, this,” he said, waving his hands around, “is still an open wound. I’m very happy with my life now, but that doesn’t mean I’m comfortable with all of it. Or discussing it openly, not that he even bothered talking with me about this before he _sent someone to my home!_ ”

Now that Stephen was talking about this, he couldn’t stop. All the stress from the past week just came to the forefront of his mind and he couldn’t help himself.

“That’s on top of him sending over roofers and contractors and a new refrigerator and grocery delivery and setting me up with an _allowance_ like I’m a kept man! And yes, maybe we do need the money, but he did all of this without even discussing it with me first! I know he’s just being generous and that he keeps confusing this bonding with marriage but—“

“Stephen,” Pepper said softly. “Stephen, you’re mad at the wrong person. I’m afraid all of that was me.”

Stephen deflated instantly. All his anger left him and if he hadn’t been sitting, he might have sank to the floor.

“I’m sorry. You’re right. I did clear it with Tony first, but I was the one who suggested and set up everything in the first place.” She paused for a moment and took a sip of her coffee. “I tend to look at an issue and see it like a problem that needs to be solved. Then I take steps to solve the problem. As much as I hate to say it, money can solve nine out of ten problems. Tony has a new husband? Okay, make sure he’s taken care of financially. Make sure food gets delivered so he can concentrate on important things, like protecting Tony. Make sure he can get around so he can get to Tony. Make sure he has a phone so he can communicate with Tony.”

She sighed. “But you’re not a problem. And I’m sorry for treating you like one.”

Stephen had no idea what to say. He just sat there and mentally apologized to Tony.

“The accessibility specialist wasn’t me though,” Pepper said. “But I know Tony only called her because he…found out you sometimes have trouble with your hands.”

“Yes, I’m sure he discovered everything,” Stephen said, for some reason still clinging to that little bit of anger. “It’s all available to him, after all.”

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “He found out from your friend. Wong, I think Tony said? Tony refused to look you up.”

Stephen stared.

“He said he wanted to hear the story from you or not at all. Look,” she said, getting to her feet. “It sounds like the two of you really need to talk to each other. He’s been running himself into the ground, and I’m running myself into the ground trying to help him. But when he gets back, I’ll tell him to call you. You both have a lot you need to talk about.”

She collected the coffee tray, then kissed his cheek. “I have to go, but I’m so glad to finally meet you. I’ll see you soon, I’m sure.”

He got to his feet and asked, “He’s in New York?”

She nodded.

“Do you know where?”

“The penthouse near the park. Why?”

“No reason.”

She smiled and walked back the way she came. She took the last of Stephen’s anger and shame with her. Maybe Tony had gone about it the wrong way, but Stephen could see his intentions. And intentions counted for something.

Stephen smiled to himself. Intentions most definitely counted for something.

“Tony’s absolutely exhausted,” he said to the Cloak.

It nodded its collar.

“He’s been going for days without real rest.”

Another nod.

“Want to take a portal to Manhattan?”

The Cloak darted off his shoulders and made excited gestures.

“Uh huh. Help him rest, please. No getting into trouble. Just straight to sleep.” Stephen opened a portal to the penthouse he’d sent novices to a few days ago and let the Cloak go straight through.

Tony really did need the sleep, he told himself. He laughed and created a portal to the Sanctum.

*  
“Boss, you’ve been awake for over thirty hours. Maybe it’s time for a nap?”

“Not now, Friday,” Tony said.

He was on the phone with his legal team, trying to develop a strategy to stop Rogers and the other rogues from being allowed onto the Avengers again. The UN might not be saying it plainly, but Tony had been reading the writing on the wall for days. It was definitely looking like not only were they all getting pardons, but they’d be welcomed back to the States and the Avengers with open arms.

Tony didn’t have a problem with them avoiding the Raft, but he didn’t want them near his home. Not when he was just putting a new team together.

Suddenly, a portal opened in the living room and Tony held his breath. He’d been so tired lately and he’d found himself actually missing Stephen more and more. The thought of having his old team back again only solidified the idea in Tony’s mind of a new Avengers team with him and Stephen as its leaders. 

And maybe he was beginning to think of Stephen as a real friend. Funny what a little distance could do for perspective.

He held his breath and watched the portal, only to see the Cloak dash out of it alone.

Tony frowned. “Hey buddy, what are you—mhph!”

The Cloak knocked the phone out of Tony’s hand and bundled him up like a Tony burrito. It floated him out of the dining room where he’d been working and down the hall to the bedroom. 

“Cloak! Did Stephen send you? What the hell, man!”

The Cloak took off his shoes and then laid him on the bed, still bundled. Friday, that traitor, killed the lights.

“This is so not okay! Let me go!” 

The Cloak just used its collar to fluff his pillows and then cuddled him more. 

“This is ridiculous! And it’s not going to work. I’m not even tired.” He struggled for another moment before he noticed something.

The Cloak smelled like Stephen. The Cloak even felt a little like Stephen. And it was warm. It was very warm. Almost against his will, Tony felt his body relax and he yawned.

“Yeah, okay, but let’s not make a habit of this, okay?” 

The Cloak nodded its collar. Tony fell asleep to the scent of old books and tea.

*

Stephen sat in the library, running his fingers over the amethyst he’d made into an amulet. He’d finally finished it. Then he’d used Tony’s money to buy a thin gold chain to hang it from. 

Take that, Stark.

The only thing that was left to do was deliver it. He and Tony had been playing tag for days, each giving unwanted gifts to the other without discussing it. Wards, money, nanny Cloaks, accessibility specialists. They were avoiding each other, and Stephen at least knew it.

But this amulet was necessary for Tony’s protection. And it was something he would have to consent to wearing. 

And Stephen couldn’t keep going like this. Trying to stay out of Tony’s way wasn’t working at all. They were a part of each other’s lives now. Nothing would change that, and Tony seemed to be embracing it. 

There was only one thing for Stephen to do. He pulled out his phone and found Tony’s contact information.

“Good evening, Doctor Strange,” the phone said. “Would you like to switch to voice activation?”

Stephen closed his eyes, torn between wanting to thank Tony and strangle him.

“Yes,” he told it. It beeped in reply.

He paused as he considered what to say. He could send a long, drawn out explanation of what he needed to give Tony. He could just dictate a time and place and hope Tony showed up.

But in the end, he went with an old standard.

**Hey**

*

Tony’s phone buzzed from his work bench.

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Hey**

Tony smiled before he could help himself. _Finally_ , he thought.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**New phone. Who dis?**

A moment went by, and Tony could almost see Stephen struggle with how to respond. Then, finally:

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Are you busy?**

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**No. I’m home.**

That wasn’t entirely true. Tony was at home, but he was always busy. And thanks to that Cloak-assisted eight hours he got the other night, he was rested enough to accomplish quite a bit.

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Would it be alright if I stopped by? I won’t take too much of your time.**

Tony smiled again and felt the little butterfly behind his heart flutter softly. 

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**Yeah, come over. I’m in my workshop at the Compound. Friday will guide you to it.**

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Thank you. I’ll be there in a moment**

Tony bounced on the balls of his feet for a moment, half-expecting to hear that tell-tale sound of a portal opening, but none came. A few minutes later, the door to his workshop opened and Stephen walked through.

It had been over a week since they’d last seen each other, and they definitely hadn’t parted on good terms. Tony had wanted to apologize since then, but still hadn’t found the damn time. 

Plus, he’d wanted to give Stephen space after everything. And he’d needed his own space to deal with what had happened. And then Quill left and Thor had happened and the rogue Avengers and Asgardians coming to Earth…

Tony hadn’t had the time he’d really wanted to sit down and think about everything that had happened. But it was too late for that now. Stephen was standing right in front of him.

“Hey,” Tony said, breaking the silence.

“Hello,” Stephen said. He looked and felt like a startled deer, like one wrong word from Tony would send him running.

“How you been?”

“Fine,” Stephen said automatically. 

God, they both sucked at this. 

“I’ve been…ridiculously busy,” Tony said, running a hand through his hair. “Quill left…about a week ago? Took the Reality Stone with him. Thank God. Thor left yesterday. He took the Space Stone, and he’s coming back with however many of his people he can find. That’s been a mess to deal with, but then who else is going to deal with this? Then there’s Rogers and, God, do you know they’re probably going to let Rogers and his group come back?”

Tony took a breath and then started pacing. With all that he knew he had to discuss with Stephen, the rogue Avengers coming back was foremost in his mind. Now that Stephen was here, it all came pouring out of him. “After all that, they get to come back. Rogers and Barton and Romanoff and—“

Tony stopped his pacing and said the name that had been in the back of his mind ever since he’d started hearing whispers about the rogues returning. The name that kept him awake at night.

“And Maximoff.”

“Who is that?” Stephen asked.

“The witch,” Tony said. He turned towards Stephen again, then backed up when he discovered Stephen crowding his space. “The one who messed with my head. Gave me all this.” He gestured to his head. “She’s not really a witch. She allowed Hydra to experiment on her. So they, used the Mind Stone and…did things to her.” A part of Tony still felt bad for his part in leading Wanda to Hydra, but a greater part of him just wanted her to stay away from him. 

“It looks like she’ll be back. Here. In my Compound.”

Stephen stepped even closer.

_Anger_

_Rage_

_Protection_

Stephen took something from one of his belt’s pouches. It looked like a necklace.

“Tony, I can’t stop Rogers and Maximoff from returning, but I can do something.” He extended his hand and showed Tony a thin gold chain with a small purple stone attached to it. Tony felt drawn to it for some reason, and reached a hand to hover over it.

It _felt_ like old books and tea.

“I made this for you,” Stephen said. “It will protect you from mental magics. I plan on being around you any time she’s around, but just in case I’m not, this amulet will protect you.”

“You’ll be here?” Tony asked, his voice full of hope and wonder.

Stephen ducked his head, looking suddenly shy. “Yes, if you’ll allow me. If Rogers and his group are returning, you’ll need your people in your corner. Me, Peter, Rhodes. I’m on your side, Tony.”

Tony could’ve cried. Maybe it was the look on his face or maybe Stephen could feel how overwhelmingly grateful he felt through the bond, but Tony closed the distance between them and swept Stephen into a firm embrace. 

He felt Stephen panic for a quick second, then he calmed and melted into Tony’s arms.

“I swear it, Tony,” Stephen said. “You won’t have to face them alone. I’m with you. I’m your bondmate. We’ll face our battles together.”

“Together,” Tony repeated, letting Stephen go. “Okay, let me see the pretty necklace.”

Stephen extended his hand again, and let Tony take it from him.

“Why does it feel like you?”

Stephen was quiet for a moment, then said, “I made it. It’s infused with my magic.”

“No wonder it feels so good,” Tony said off-handedly, not noticing the look on Stephen’s face. “Oh yeah,” he said putting it on. “I can totally wear this under my suits. Very discreet. Thank you, Doc.”

“You’re welcome.”

“So, you want on the squad officially? Be a part of Team Stark?”

Stephen frowned. “What—what does that mean?”

“Become an Avenger?” Tony asked. “For real. I need a team, Stephen. And you and I are a great team. You and me, no one could stand a chance against the two of us.”

Stephen looked at the ground and Tony saw his jaw clench. “When I think of a team, I think of equals. I think of people who discuss important matters _before_ rushing into things. Especially really important, very personal things.”

Tony knew he’d done something wrong, but he had no idea what it was. Maybe if he stayed quiet Stephen would tell him. It usually worked with Pepper.

Stephen found a tall stool and plopped down on it. “You sent an accessibility specialist to my home, Tony.”

“I—yeah, I wanted to help,” Tony said, slowly. “Wong said you have trouble sometimes, so I thought—“

Tony hadn’t seen Stephen look at him like that since before Titan. Back when he’d convinced Tony he was just some awful asshole wizard that only cared for the Time Stone and nothing else. 

God, Tony had really messed up.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said, because he was. He hadn’t meant to hurt Stephen.

“Do you know how violated I felt?” Stephen said, his voice calm and low when Tony could feel his tumultuous emotions. “How exposed? I thought you had looked through my medical reports, Tony. I was so angry—“

“I didn’t!” Tony said, not to defend himself, but because he needed Stephen to know he would have never done that. “I wouldn’t. And I’m sorry. I was only trying to help and—“

“It got a bit lost in translation,” Stephen said. “Yes. Pepper told me. She said it was all her fault.”

Tony winced. “Yeah, she mentioned that. I’m sorry. I know she said it was her fault, but it wasn’t. It was mine. And I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—“

“A car accident,” Stephen said, interrupting him.

Tony had the wind knocked out of him. He sat down on a stool opposite Stephen.

“I wasn’t paying attention,” Stephen said, “and I paid the price with my hands. I lost my career, everything I’d worked so hard for. But I was also an arrogant asshole who wanted it all back and wouldn’t take no for an answer. So, I went to Kathmandu and found the Ancient One who taught me magic and the rest…”

“Is history?”

Stephen nodded and held up his hands for Tony to see. “They ache all the time, but it’s manageable. Sometimes I do need help with basic care, but the Cloak is a good service Cloak.” The Cloak petted Stephen’s cheeks lovingly. “And I wouldn’t have minded talking about this with you _before_ you’d sent that accessibility expert.”

Tony closed his eyes and nodded. “Yeah. I am sorry.”

Stephen looked at him, and that hard look he’d been giving Tony softened. “I’m sorry I didn’t ask your permission before I put wards on your properties,” Stephen said. His eyes were sad. “I know how you feel about magic and I did it anyway.”

“It’s okay, I forgive—wait, properties? As in plural?”

Stephen stood up and walked towards Tony’s workbench. There were schematics for upgrades to Peter’s suit, better integration for Rhodey’s braces, head gear he’d started working on for Vision. He ran his hand along Peter’s web shooters and paused.

“We’re going to have to hide where I live, Tony,” Stephen said softly. “And Kamar-Taj. I know they’ll know my name. I’m an American citizen and I made quite a name for myself in my past life. That’s fine, I expected it. It’s even fine if they know the details of my powers. But they absolutely cannot know about Kamar-Taj or my order. We’ve managed to keep ourselves secret for thousands of years. I cannot be the one who brings our order down by bringing it into the light.”

“Wait,” Tony said, a feeling of absolute hope and wonder spring inside of him. “Are you saying—“

“I’m saying that I’m on your team, Tony. I’m saying that you’re my friend and my bondmate and none of this,” he gestured to himself and Tony, “is going to get any easier if we don’t lay our cards on the table. So, I’ll join the Avengers, and I’ll fight by your side. For as long as you’ll have me.”

Tony’s heart warmed and he allowed himself to smile. This was all he’d ever wanted. A team, a family, people he could trust, he could count on. Here was Stephen saying he would be that person. And he knew he was telling the truth. Tony could feel it.

But first…

He extended a hand and waited for Stephen to take it. He gently shook it once and then released it. “Thank you, Stephen.”

“Don’t thank me for being a good friend, Tony,” Stephen said. And where Tony knew Stephen said ‘friend’ he knew he’d meant something else. Stephen’s love for Tony shined so bright it was blinding.

Tony vowed to never take advantage of that love. To treat Stephen with more respect than he had been in the past few weeks. That kind of love deserved care and gratitude, especially since it wasn’t returned.

Tony smiled and decided things were way too serious. “Best husband I’ve ever had.”

Stephen scoffed. “Don’t start.”

“You know your little baby wizards were asking me questions about you at maybe a mile a minute. Weirdest thing that has ever happened to me.”

“Because you’re so used to people asking about you,” Stephen replied.

“Yes! So, are you a vampire?” Tony asked, smirking.

“How did you like being a burrito the other day, asshole?”

“Loved it, douchebag. Best sleep I’d gotten in a year, probably.” 

“Really?” Stephen asked, looking doubtful.

“Yup,” Tony said. He didn’t mention how Stephen’s scent had helped relax him enough so he could drift off. No need to mention that.

“I could arrange for another sleepover if you’d like.”

“Ah—“ Tony started to say, but cut himself off. 

The opening was right there, and if this was literally any other adult human being on the planet, Tony would have lifted an eyebrow and made a sex joke. 

But he couldn’t do that to Stephen. He couldn’t be that cruel. He reigned in his dumb joke.

“Nah, I’m sure Cloak would miss you too much. Still, it was a good night. Right, buddy?” Tony asked it.

The Cloak nodded its collar.

“I actually really needed it, so thanks,” Tony said, to both Stephen and the Cloak. “One huge, world-ending threat is over, but now we have to deal with the aftermath. And the aftermath,” Tony said, leaning back on his stool, “is trying to invade my Compound.”

Tony leaned too far back on the stool, and the legs went out from under him. He was about to bean his head on the table when Stephen caught him and helped him to stand on his own two feet again.

Stephen smiled softly and said, “Don’t worry so much, Tony. I got you.”

There was that feeling of coming home he had never felt before. That feeling of friendship that he’d never had with the Avengers. Something he’d wanted so badly. It was there, right there between the both of them. 

This might have started out badly. It might not have been Tony’s idea of what a friendship should look like. And it was still really, really weird. 

But it was everything he’d ever wanted. So, he’d take grab onto it with both hands.

“Yeah,” he said. “I got you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The credit for about 3/4 of the questions the baby wizards ask Tony goes to glaucous_atlanticus. He has the most amazing sense of humor. This chapter is one close to the heart, so if you can please let me know what you thought.


	8. Family Game Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was fun to write. At one point a few weeks ago, I literally just took out my moleskin during my own family's weekly dinner. Also, it was fun to write Team Parker because that group is the sweetest. 
> 
> Thank you so much for all the kudos and comments. It makes me so happy to know something so close to my heart is being enjoyed by people. Also, the amount of you who are convinced that Quill touched the frogs is staggering. (He did. He totally touched the frogs). Also, the baby wizards are not up for adoption but I'll let you know if that changes.
> 
> For anyone who didn't search the imdb tags for Doctor Strange, Master Minoru is a master briefly seen at Kamar-Taj. In fact, she might not have been a master in the movie, but she is now! 
> 
> Also, I'm bringing in some of Stephen's backstory from 616. You don't really need to know 616 to understand it, since he explains it himself. And since I don't think Stephen's age is mentioned in any of the movies, I gave him BC's age: born in 1976 so in 2016 he's 40.

“So, to review the key points to this _extremely_ important meeting,” Master Minoru said, with an upturn to her lips. This had hardly been an important meeting and they all knew it. “The training for the novices will go on as previously scheduled, with all masters taking at least three lessons weekly. Next, due to recent events and in anticipation of future events, Sanctum masters must strengthen the wards on their own sanctums.”

Stephen tapped his foot. “So absolutely nothing has changed since the last time we held a meeting of Sanctum masters,” Stephen said, irritated.

“One thing has definitely changed,” said Master Hamir, under his breath. Stephen seethed.

“Now, Stephen,” Minoru said, smiling. “You realize it’s important for the Sanctum masters to gather regularly. It is our sworn duty to protect our Sanctums. We must _share_ our knowledge.”

“Uh-huh,” said Stephen, crossing his arms. 

“Moving on,” Minoru said. “Lastly, Wong believes he has negotiated a knowledge trade with Szandor Zoso, the Sorcerer Supreme of the 13th dimension. We have several ancient tomes he wants, he has several that we want. Wong will be doing the trade-off late this evening. Doctor Strange, will you need additional assistance at the New York Sanctum?”

Stephen drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair and gave her a dirty look. “No,” he drawled. 

“Are you certain?” she asked, smirking at him. She was doing this on purpose. Drawing it out for as long as possible just to see him squirm. That was fine. He would not wiggle in his seat like a child. The knowing looks the other Sanctum masters were giving him didn’t bother him at all.

“Very certain,” he hissed through his teeth.

“That leaves only one matter left,” said Minoru.

“No,” Stephen said, “there really isn’t anything left to discuss.”

“Oh, no, Strange. There really is,” she said.

“Stephen, I’m sorry, but you cannot soul bond to _Iron Man_ and not expect everyone to want to talk about it,” said Master Hamir.

“I could, if I was talking to adults.”

“Insult me all you like,” Minoru said. “Just tell me, the being that navigates his suit, is it a magical creature or did he create it on his own? Does it have a soul?”

“I would say that mortal men cannot create souls, but then stranger things have happened,” Hamir said. “I’ve always suspected Tony Stark is his own kind of sorcerer. Tell me, Stephen, is his technology truly powered by his reactor or is it magic?”

Stephen resigned himself to endure this conversation. “I’m surprised you aren’t concerned he’s going to expose us to the world like the elder sorcerers.”

“Pah!” said Hamir, waving the arm that was missing a hand dismissively. “He’s a business man. He knows when revealing a secret would be bad for business.”

“And what business is that?” Minoru asked.

“The business of protecting our reality,” Hamir said, then gestured to Stephen. “The business of keeping Stephen safe. Let the elders worry about Tony Stark’s loose tongue. I want to know if he has a car that can go to the moon.”

Stephen threw his head back onto the chair in exasperation. “You have _literally_ been to other dimensions!”

“Yes,” Hamir said. “But I’ve never driven a Lamborghini to Mars.”

“The both of you are worse than the novices,” Stephen said.

“That is not true,” said Hamir. “I know for a fact it is not true, because I was walking past when one of them asked you about his—“

Stephen’s phone took pity on him and chose that moment to make a ‘ping’ sound. He removed it from his tunic and the phone automatically displayed the message.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**How is it that the billionaire industrialist who’s also in charge of a superhero organization is on time for game night, but the guy who makes balloon animals is not?**

“Damn,” Stephen muttered, noticing the time. “Well, as much as I’d love to continue this line of questioning, I have to go.” He opened a portal to Tony’s penthouse. “It’s family game night.”

Before the portal closed, Stephen heard Minoru ask, “Stephen has a family?”

“Of course he does,” Hamir responded. “He has a bondmate.” 

Stephen shook off the shiver of longing that statement created and closed the portal. Looking around, he found himself in what must be the dining room of Tony’s New York penthouse. The lights were turned on, and there were bottles of water and pizza boxes spread out over a table. He heard voices from another room and went to find Tony and Peter.

Turning a corner, he stopped short at seeing Tony and a woman standing in the doorway to what looked to be the living room. Stephen smiled and was about to approach them, when he saw Tony grin and step into the woman’s personal space and put a hand on the doorframe above her head, leaning into her.

The smile melted from his face. Stephen couldn’t help the sharp stab of pain he felt, like icy water being poured down his back. He knew it was ridiculous, knew he had no real claim to Tony. Their bond was not a romantic one. It had required no promises, and Tony wasn’t breaking any by flirting with someone who obviously welcomed him in her space.

Stephen knew that, logically. But his heart didn’t, and he couldn’t tear his eyes away. He watched Tony flinch and then look around, finally seeing him. Tony immediately looked guilty for doing absolutely nothing wrong and took a step away from the woman. Clearing his throat, he gave Stephen a smile that didn’t meet his eyes.

“Doc, hey!” Tony said with false cheerfulness.

“Hi,” Stephen said. His smile to Tony and his friend must have looked pained, but he could hardly help it. “Don’t let me interrupt. I’ll just—“ he said, gesturing towards the living room.

“Oh, you weren’t interrupting anything,” Tony’s friend said. She shot Tony a glare before turning back to Stephen with a smile. “That’s literally just how he talks to people. Hi, I’m May. I’m Peter’s aunt.” She put out her hand to greet Stephen, then saw his scarred hands. She quickly looked away, then met his eyes as they shook hands. “You must be Doctor Strange.”

“What gave it away?” asked Tony. “The magic necklace, the wizard get-up, or the actual sentient outerwear?” He looked past Stephen to the Cloak. “How you doing, buddy?”

The Cloak waved its collar back. 

“Well, yes,” May said, smiling awkwardly. She shot Tony another dirty look. “You’re exactly as Peter described you. Thank you for taking care of him while you were away. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to him.”

Stephen was about to respond when he heard Peter shout, “Doctor Strange!” then fling himself into Stephen’s arms. Stephen couldn’t help himself. He smiled and returned the hug, letting the ache of seeing Tony with someone else be washed away by Peter’s joy. 

“Hi, Peter,” Stephen said.

“Oh my God, I’m so happy you could make it!” Peter shouted. “I mean, I know that you and Mr. Stark said you would come, but I also know that you’re both really busy and have really important jobs so I would have totally understood if you couldn’t make it. But you did! This is so amazing!”

Stephen didn’t want to explain that hanging out with Tony and Peter definitely beat being interrogated by the other Sanctum masters. “I’m glad I could make it, too,” Stephen said.

“And you were the last piece of the puzzle, Doc, so let’s get started.” Tony stuck his head into the living room and said, “Ned! Let’s all go to the dining room. Probably be easier to play a game there. Oh, and come meet the wizard.”

The sound of scuffling and then a chair falling over could be heard and Stephen winced then braced himself to be hit by the boy who almost ran into him in his excitement.

“Doctor Wizard!” the boy shouted, his eyes wide in awe. “Hi, I’m Ned, Peter’s friend.”

“Hello, Ned, Peter’s friend,” Stephen said, amused.

“Oh, my God, that was such a dad joke!” Peter cried. Both Ned and Peter were excitedly swarming Stephen like over-excited puppies. Stephen had to admit he was charmed by their enthusiasm. 

“Calm down, guys,” Tony said. “He’s not going anywhere.”

“He might,” May said under her breath. Stephen wasn’t entirely sure what she meant by that, but he guessed it had something to do with what Peter told her about his and Tony’s relationship. He really wasn’t prepared for yet another inquisition about the bonding and explaining how it was _not_ like being married, which is what every non-sorcerer seemed to think.

Unfortunately, there really didn’t seem to be a way to bring that up in casual conversation, so Stephen let the matter drop. It was family game night and all. He should be trying to have fun.

“Great, now that we’re all introduced, we can get on with it,” Tony said, patting Ned on the shoulder to encourage him to head to the table. “I invited Rhodey and Pepper, but they couldn’t make it. Next time, hopefully.”

“Everything alright?” Stephen asked.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “Pepper has a lot of SI stuff going on, and Rhodey is in Washington. That, uh, thing we talked about last week? He’s dealing with that. Or hopefully preventing that, but we’ll see.” Tony’s face fell for a moment as he met Stephen’s eyes. They’d already discussed the rogue Avengers returning, but Stephen sent calm through their bond and gave Tony a small nod. 

Tony gave a pained smile, returned the nod, then turned toward the teenagers already devouring the pizzas.

May pulled Stephen aside as the rest made their way to the dining room. “Hey, about before—he really always talks to me like that. It didn’t mean anything.”

Stephen wanted the ground to open and swallow him whole. He had a feeling Peter had told his aunt a very different version of what happened on Titan. 

“It’s fine, really,” Stephen said. “What’s between Tony and I wouldn’t get in the way of anything. I imagine Peter told you an exaggeration.”

“Peter exaggerate? Never!” May laughed. “No, but really. In addition to him being _Tony Stark_ , I would never get involved with a married man. Ever.” She gave him a genuine smile, but Stephen had no idea how to respond. 

She continued smiling at him, then her eyes went wide. “Not that there’s anything wrong with being married to Tony Stark!” she exclaimed, realizing what she said. “He’s…great. He’s been so good to Peter. He’s a hero!” she said, almost like she was trying to list Tony’s good qualities. “He’s definitely easy on the eyes,” she said, looking towards the dining room.

Stephen looked at Tony. He’d taken off his suit jacket, leaving him in a white shirt, vest, blue patterned tie, and fitted trousers. He looked like a daydream Stephen had had as a younger man of what a future partner might look like. He was beauty personified, and Stephen couldn’t touch him.

“Yes,” he said, agreeing with May. “He definitely is.”

Stephen saw Tony wince and grab his chest, the space where he knew Tony felt him. He looked around and met Stephen’s eyes.

“Stephen, quit moping and get over here,” he said, gesturing towards the table. “It’s family game night. No moping allowed.”

Rolling his eyes, Stephen approached the table. “I wasn’t moping.”

“Uh-huh,” Tony said, grabbing a piece of pizza. “So kids, what are we playing?”

“Cards Against Humanity,” Peter and Ned said in unison.

“What’s that?” May asked the same time Tony said, “No, we’re not.”

“Why not?” asked Peter.

“Uh, because your aunt is here is why not. Are you kidding me? Or did you go through that entire deck and make it family-friendly?” Tony asked.

“Oh, uhhh…” Ned said, his mouth open and his eyes wide.

“How bad could it be?” asked Stephen. Peter was such a good kid, and he’d brought his aunt along with him. After all the convincing he’d done to get _family_ game night to happen, Stephen doubted he would do anything to make it awkward. He picked up one of the black cards.

It read, ‘Daniel Radcliffe’s delicious asshole.’ He set the card back down.

“Burn this one,” he said to Peter. Stephen picked up another and read, ‘The primal, ball-slapping sex your parents are having right now.’ 

He looked up at Peter, trying not to laugh. “Peter, what the fu—“

Before Stephen could express his amusement, the Cloak slapped its collar across his mouth.

Tony’s mouth dropped open, and he leaned back in his chair in feigned shock. “Oh! Someone has a dirty mouth, and I think it’s the wizard!”

“And someone has a dirty mind,” Stephen said, pushing away the Cloak and losing the battle against laughter. May tried to take the card from his hand, but he pulled it away from her and said, “Um, no. Trust me. Just keep believing your nephew is a sweet angel that doesn’t know what sex is.”

He handed the card over to the Cloak, who whisked it away and headed straight for the kitchen. The garbage disposal running could be heard over the sound of laughter, then the Cloak returned with a pat on the head for Ned and Peter.

“Oh, God,” Peter muttered, his face red. “I’m sitting at a table with May and my two dads and they’re talking about sex. Karen, activate instant kill.”

“Two dads?” asked Stephen. “And you are literally the one who brought this game,” Stephen said, laughing harder. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Tony watching him. He looked pleasantly surprised.

“Okay, you might have a point,” Peter said, smiling nervously. “Uh, maybe Friday can make a Risk board? Or...Monopoly?” Everyone just looked at Peter as the silence grew. “Um…I also brought Uno?”

“Really, kid? Uno?” Tony said.

“I happen to like Uno,” said May, sitting down with a slice of pizza. “And the last time I checked, Uno wasn’t sexy. Stephen?”

“I’m sure Stephen can make Uno sexy,” Tony said, like the response was on automatic. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he cleared his throat and looked away.

“Uno is fine,” Stephen said, brushing off Tony’s flirting just like May did. Maybe Tony really did just flirt with everyone. It would make sense that this was the first time Stephen was really seeing it, since this was the first time they were together in a casual setting.

He resolved to ignore it. It would be foolish to think anything else. He forced his thoughts back to the game.

Inwardly, Stephen realized it didn’t matter what game they played. He was just happy to be there. The last time he’d had a family game night had been when he was a boy, and those memories were tainted.

So, the five of them ate their pizza and let Peter be the dealer. They played and ate for a while. Just when it looked like Tony was about to win the first game, Peter held his card close to his chest and said, “‘Don’t be too proud of this technological terror you’ve constructed. Your ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Fours.’ Bam!” Then he threw down the Draw 4 card.

“Son of a bitch,” Tony muttered, picking up four cards.

“That’s the second time you’ve quoted A New Hope, Peter,” Stephen said, smiling. “Is that your favorite Star Wars movie?”

“Yeah! I mean, I kinda grew up more on the prequels, so I love them too, but I _love_ A New Hope. I always wanted to be Luke Skywalker,” Peter said.

“I think you’ve always wanted to be a hero, Peter,” May said, putting down a card. 

“Yeah, it’s dumb,” Peter said, shrugging.

“It’s not dumb,” said Stephen.

“Peter,” May said. She reached across the table to take Peter’s hand. Her eyes were shining with pride. “You are a hero. You _are_ Luke Skywalker.”

Peter blushed and ducked his head. Tony ruffled Peter’s hair and said, “Luke Skywalker wishes he was you.” Everyone happily agreed.

“If Peter is Luke, does that make me Han?” Tony asked, leaning back in his chair. “Cause I’m totally okay with piloting the Falcon. Is Doc Obi-Wan?”

Peter jumped out of his seat. “The Cloak is R2-D2!”

The Cloak fluttered in joy, and Stephen laughed out loud at the comparison. “You are definitely Han, Tony. You didn’t truly believe magic existed even though you saw it with your own eyes. Not until—“

Not until they’d bonded, and Tony could feel Stephen in his own soul, Stephen thought. His face fell and he cursed himself for bringing an uncomfortable silence to the room where before there had been cheerful laughter. He was always doing that…

Peter looked between them and turned to Ned. “Okay, if I’m Luke, then Ned is Leia.”

Ned frowned. “Not complaining cause Leia is awesome, but…why?”

“Because Leia’s the one running things behind the scenes,” Peter said, shaking Ned by the shoulders. “Leia is the guy in the chair.”

Ned’s face lit up. “Oh, yeah! I am Leia! Awesome!”

“Well, I definitely object to being the aunt in A New Hope,” May said, grabbing another slice of pizza. “Because she dies in the opening act.”

“And Obi-Wan dies in the end,” Stephen said. “But aside from that, I can see it. My Cloak is much cooler, though.”

The Cloak tickled Stephen’s cheekbones, and everyone laughed.

“It’s also saved my life a dozen times, so it’s very much like R2 in that way,” Stephen said.

“Friday can be my Chewie,” Tony said. “She’s literally my co-pilot and willing to tear the arms off of anyone who pisses me off.”

“Absolutely, boss,” Friday said.

Tony put a card down. “What’s your favorite Star Wars movie, Ned?”  
Ned looked nervous and put a card down hesitantly. He muttered and stuffed his face with pizza.

“What?” May asked.

“He said ‘Phantom Menace,’” Peter responded.

The entire table was immediately in an uproar.

“Oh, Ned,” May said. “And I really liked having you come over all the time.”

“Why?” asked Tony, with a look of disgust on his face.

“That movie is literally the reason George Lucas is dead to me,” said Stephen.

“I grew up with it!” Ned exclaimed. “It was the movie I watched on repeat when I was eight. I didn’t realize how dumb Jar-Jar was until I was a teenager! And it’s cute. I liked the pod racing, and Anakin was around my age. I just liked it, okay?”

The adults around the table all looked a little ashamed of themselves, the Cloak included.

“Yeah, I can see how that movie was really made for kids,” said Tony. “Plus, I can’t really talk. My favorite movie when I was that age was the Apple Dumpling Gang.”

“Yes!” Ned said, pointing at Tony. “Vindication!” He put down another card and asked, “What’s your favorite Star Wars movie, May?”

“Jedi,” she said. “Tony?”

“A New Hope,” Tony said. “I absolutely fell in love with Leia. Han too, but I didn’t really realize it until much later. Stephen? What’s your favorite Star Wars movie?”

“Empire,” Stephen replied.

“Blasphemy!” Tony shouted, a smile on his face. 

It was said in a certain familiar tone that brought Stephen back to a very specific movie he’d always loved. 

Testing the waters, he replied, “Empire had the better ending. Luke gets his hand cut off, Han goes to Jabba. It’s just a series of down endings. All Jedi had was Muppets.”

He’d likely botched the entire scene, but Tony seemed to recognize it. His smile stretched across his entire face and his eyes lit up with joy. Stephen congratulated himself for causing that.

“God, I remember seeing that movie when it came out. It was playing at this gross, tiny theater, and I just fell in love with it,” Tony said.

“What movie, Mr. Stark?” Peter asked.

“Clerks,” Stephen said. “1994, Kevin Smith. I’m surprised you liked it so much, since you have absolutely nothing in common with the main characters.”

“Hey, we’re all the underdog in our own story,” Tony said, putting his hands up in an apologetic gesture. “Did you see it when it came out? You would’ve been…what? Eighteen, nineteen?”

“Eighteen,” Stephen replied. “And no. There weren’t a lot of independent movie theaters in Nebraska.”

Tony leaned back in his chair. “You’re from Nebraska?”

“You don’t know where your husband is from?” May asked with disbelief.

“Bondmate,” Stephen automatically corrected. “And yes, born and raised.”

Tony gestured towards him. “You don’t have an accent.”

“I have an American accent, same as you,” he retorted, tapping his cards on the table. “I just sort of…lost it over the years. After medical school it was intentional.”

Tony nodded. “God, what was it like growing up in Nebraska being…” Again, he gestured towards Stephen.

Stephen frowned. “It wasn’t until I’d already established a name for myself in medicine that I discovered magic. I…told you that.”

“Yeah, I didn’t mean that.” Tony rubbed the back of his head. “I meant what was it like growing up gay in Nebraska?”

Stephen vaguely heard the sounds of chairs moving across the floor while he was considering the question. “Bi, actually. And it wasn’t something I really discovered about myself until college. By then it didn’t matter what anyone in Nebraska would have thought about it.”

“You never went back home?” 

Stephen shook his head. “Nope. I went to undergrad at Columbia and never went back. Not even for holidays.”

Tony tapped his cards on the table, and Stephen could feel the curiosity burning in him. But Tony just sat there, not wanting to ask something that was obviously so personal. Stephen laid his cards on the table.

He wanted Tony to know him.

“I had a sister. Donna.” Just saying her name was painful. He had intentionally not thought of her or his parents for years. But he’d be lying to himself if he couldn’t admit that he still missed her, and that her death had profoundly affected him. “She died when we were kids. We were swimming. She drowned.”

Tony’s hand reached across the table, and Stephen found himself taking it before he’d even considered it. 

“I was older than her, and I should have been watching her better. I always blamed myself.”

Tony nodded and bit his lip. “Here’s the part where I tell you it’s obviously not your fault cause you were a kid yourself, and that accidents happen,” Tony said, gently squeezing Stephen’s hand. “But then I know that as an adult you know that, but there’s no way to really explain it to your heart. I’ve been there. Kind of,” he said, putting a hand in the air. “Obviously not the same situation, but I know what deep, heart-breaking guilt feels like.”

Stephen nodded. “Sucks, doesn’t it?”

Tony snorted. “There was this man. Yinsen. When I was held captive in Afghanistan, he’s the one that saved me. He did open-heart surgery, and I woke up with a car battery in my chest.” Tony spread his fingers between Stephen’s so they were palm to palm. “One of the worst moments of my life. Definitely in the top five.

“So, you know the story. The Ten Rings wanted me to make a weapon for them, I built a suit instead, blah blah blah, we break out. Except Yinsen didn’t make it out. He let me go ahead. Told me not to waste my life.”

“You didn’t,” Stephen said immediately. “You aren’t. You won’t.”

Tony nodded. “And logically, I know that.”

Smiling softly, Stephen looked at their joined hands. “But someone needs to explain it to your heart.”

“Yeah.”

“I understand.”

“I know you do.”

In that moment, Stephen felt so overwhelmed with love for Tony he felt it would burst out of his chest. Here was the best man Stephen had ever known, sitting right in front of him like he wasn’t a living, breathing miracle. As though heroes like Tony Stark were born every day and his very existence wasn’t amazing. 

Images of fourteen million futures flashed before Stephen’s eyes, and he couldn’t help but be in awe. He knew that Tony could feel everything Stephen was currently feeling, and that he was doing absolutely nothing to hide it. He didn’t care. For right now, Stephen wanted Tony to know how loved he was. Even if it was unreturned. Tony was the most amazing man who’d ever lived, and Stephen needed Tony to know that.

“Wow,” Tony whispered, then shivered slightly. He gave Stephen’s hand one final, gentle squeeze, then took back his own back.

Their eyes were locked on one another’s for another moment, before Tony blinked.

“I swear we started the evening with other people here,” Tony said.

Stephen snapped out of the haze he’d been in and looked around. “Oh,” he said. At some point May, Peter, and Ned had left. “Did they leave the penthouse altogether?” he asked the Cloak.

The Cloak nodded.

Stephen sighed. “I’m sorry, Tony.”

Tony gave him an incredulous gesture. “Why? I’m pretty sure I’m the one who started with the super personal questions. Besides, I haven’t seen you for a few days and before that I hadn’t seen you for a week. I’m pretty sure it’s a good idea to get to know the guy I’m married to.”

“Bonded,” Stephen said. He knew he was probably going to lose this battle, but he had to try regardless.

Tony shrugged. “What’s the difference?”

“Well, for starters, we aren’t _legally_ married. The vows we made to each other were to protect our reality together and to allow each other the use of our powers.”

“Yeah, and to bind our souls together, Stephen,” Tony said, and the strength with which he said the statement surprised Stephen. “I feel like you keep missing that part. We agreed to bind our _souls_ together. That’s bigger than marriage, but marriage always seemed really permanent to me. That’s why I never did it before.”

“Well, yes—“

“And I know that…” He paused for a moment, and Stephen held his breath when he realized what Tony was about to say. “And I know that you love me, and I know that complicates things. But I’m trying really hard to do right by you. This isn’t nothing to me. This means something. And I’ve been really, really busy lately, but I also really want to get to know you. So please don’t apologize for getting involved in a heavy conversation that _I started_ because I’m not.”

It wasn’t very often that Stephen was literally shocked speechless, but that’s where he found himself. Tony never stopped surprising him. 

“But we probably owe an apology to May, Ned, and Peter,” Tony said with a sigh. “And May was already kinda pissed at me.”

“I noticed…something,” Stephen said. “What did you do?”

Tony squinted then frowned. “Why do you assume it’s something I did?”

Stephen gave him a look.

“Ugh, fine. I’m pretty sure Peter just told her we were married. No real background information about us…you know, not really knowing each other at the time, universe hanging in the balance crap. She just thinks I’m a shit husband.”

“Oh,” Stephen said.

“Yeah. She probably thinks it’s really weird I didn’t know where my husband grew up.”

“That would be weird, yeah,” Stephen said. He tapped his fingers along the table. Getting to know Tony didn’t have to be all serious conversations about how terrible their lives had gone. Resolved to turning the evening around, Stephen asked, “What’s your favorite color?”

Tony laughed. “Really?”

Stephen shrugged. Tony didn’t have to answer but it was definitely a lighter getting to know you question then ‘did your parents hate you when you came out.’

“Guess,” Tony said.

“Hmm, let’s think,” Stephen said, playfully tapping his lips. “I’m thinking red.”

“Ha! I really love red, Doc, but you’re wrong. It’s not my favorite.”

Stephen frowned. “Gold?”

“Nope.”

“You realize you literally fly around in a red and gold suit?”

“Yeah but all my bots are a brushed metal grey. So are Friday’s servers,” Tony said, smiling. And Stephen felt just the idea of his bots and AI making him happy. 

“I love you, too, boss,” said Friday.

“Thanks, baby girl. What about you?”

“You’re going to think I’m lying, but my favorites are also red and grey.” The Cloak chose that moment to brush itself against Stephen’s cheeks again. “It’s been grey for the longest time, but this one made it impossible not to see red and smile.”

“Aww,” Tony said. “So, if you grew up in Nebraska do you love football? Cause we could always go to a game. We could bring the kids if you want. Make it a nice family outing.”

Family outing, Stephen thought. He needed to get used to belonging to something like a family, he realized, or he’d drown Tony in shock and gratitude. 

He was about to say that he’d always been a bit of an outcast because he hated football when Friday interrupted. 

“Incoming call from Colonel Rhodes, boss. He says it’s urgent.”

“Put him on, Friday,” Tony said. “Sorry, but Rhodey was dealing with the Pentagon all day.” 

“No, it’s fine—“ Stephen was cut off as a small hologram of James Rhodes popped up from the center of the table. He hadn’t even noticed tech there.

“Hey, Tony,” Rhodes said, and even though they’d never met Stephen could tell he had bad news.

“Honey bear, meet the doctor wizard. Stephen, this is Rhodey.”

“Ignore him, Stephen. He’s always like this,” Rhodey said, turning to Stephen.

“Damn, and I’ve lost my receipt,” Stephen said.

Tony put a hand on his chest. “You trying to return me? I am shocked at you, Stephen! Shocked and hurt!"

“Can’t blame a man for trying. Listen, Tony,” Rhodes said, his tone suddenly grave. “I have news.”

_Dread_

_Fear_

_Desolation_

“I’m going to tell Stephen anyway, Rhodey,” Tony said softly. Stephen could hear the fear in his voice, the resignation. “Go ahead and say it.”

“They’re going to be pardoned,” Rhodey said. “All of them. Even Wanda. Even Rogers.”

Taking a deep breath, Stephen extended a hand towards Tony, then tried not to feel a thrill of hope when his hand was quickly accepted. He saw Rhodey look at their joint hands and give a quickly fleeting grin.

“And reinstated?” Tony asked, his voice low and defeated.

“Yeah. They’re going back to the Compound. They don’t plan on telling you until next week.”

Tony hissed in a breath, and Stephen squeezed his hand as hard as he could.

“I’m sorry, Tony,” Rhodey said. “I wish I was calling with better news.”

“Thank you for letting us know, Colonel,” Stephen said quickly. “I think—Um…” Tony wasn’t looking at either of them, and he could feel that he was in shock but didn’t know what to say to Rhodes.

“Yeah. You gonna be there for a while?” he asked Stephen.

Feeling cold as Tony suddenly let go of his hand and left the room, Stephen said, “I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

Rhodey nodded and gave a sad smile. “Good. He needs someone in his corner.” 

Stephen nodded. Friday cut the feed.

The pain coming from Tony was almost enough to keep Stephen from standing. Feelings of overwhelming anger and betrayal pushed the breath from Stephen’s lungs. He wondered if this was how Tony felt every time Stephen got lost in his own pain and resolved to get a better hold on his emotions.

The sound of his chair sliding across the floor was grating to his ears, the penthouse had gone so quiet. He slowly approached the sitting room, and saw Tony leaned over on the sofa. His face was in his hands.

Stephen didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t sure what sort of comfort Tony would accept from him, or if he wanted any comfort from him at all. A part of him wanted to go, give Tony space to grieve or rant or whatever it is he needed to do.

But that wasn’t what he’d signed up for. _Friends_ , Tony had said and meant it. How many times had Tony said it since they’d bonded? That he wanted Stephen as a friend, that he needed more friends? 

He’d invited Stephen to an actual family game night. What more proof did Stephen need?

The Cloak apparently needed none because it detached itself from Stephen’s shoulders and draped itself over Tony. Stephen held his breath to see how Tony would react.

“Thanks, Red,” he muttered into his hands. The Cloak cuddled him closer.

Stephen knew what he had to do, but he was absolutely terrified to do it. He pulled himself together, reminded himself that Tony needed him, and slowly placed his shaking hand on Tony’s shoulder.

He felt Tony move into his touch and exhaled. Still, he knew he was hardly offering any comfort. Unsure of what to do, Stephen could only offer what always cheered him up.

“Want to come to my place and eat ice cream?”

That caused a response. Tony shifted back to look at him. “What?”

Suddenly feeling very silly, Stephen doubled down. “My place. Ice cream. Comfy chairs. Fireplace. Talk?” Great, he was so nervous he was no longer capable of creating sentences.

Tony stared at him for a moment then snorted. “Yeah, sure. Lead the way.”

The Cloak stayed with Tony as Stephen cast a portal, then stayed with him as he cautiously inspected it. Stephen walked through, more than comfortable with his chosen mode of transportation, only to find Tony still waiting on the other side.

“Sorry, it’s just—“ Tony said, gesturing towards the portal. “I literally saw you use one of these to cut a guy’s arm off.”

Stephen nodded and extended a hand, so his arm was bisecting the portal. Slowly, still with a little fear, Tony took Stephen’s hand and crossed through. 

They walked into the sitting room, the roof now fully repaired. Stephen used magic to create a fire in the fireplace, then gestured to one of the comfy chairs in front of it. 

“Have a seat,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”

Stephen hurried to the kitchen, suddenly thankful for the new freezer and grocery delivery. He pulled out two pints of Ben and Jerry’s, grabbed two spoons, then bumped into Wong.

“Oh!” he shouted.

“The Sanctum master should have knowledge of whoever is in the Sanctum at all times,” Wong said with a straight face.

“Right.” Stephen rolled his eyes. “Sorry for being distracted, but Tony’s here. Something…unfortunate happened.”

Wong shifted his stance. “Do you need my help?”

“No,” Stephen said, grateful. “At least not right now. Thanks though.” He started walking towards the living room and Tony when a thought occurred to him. “You’re back early. You were meeting Zoso tonight.”

Wong shrugged. “He never showed.”

Stephen frowned. “That’s not like him. Especially not when books are involved. The man’s collection rivals yours.”

“Hmph,” Wong grunted. “He wishes. It’s not the first time a cranky sorcerer has annoyed me, it will not be the last. Go to Stark, Stephen. The books can wait.”

Stephen nodded, but made a note to check on Zoso himself. It really was uncharacteristic, especially for a Sorcerer Supreme.

Tony had resumed his stance, hunched over with his face in his hands. He looked up when Stephen approached, handing him a pint of ice cream.

“Thanks, Doc—“ He squinted at the pint, then glared at Stephen. “Really?”

“What?” Stephen asked.

“A Hunk of Hulk of Burning Fudge?” He tapped his spoon on the Hulk’s face in the middle of the pint’s label. “I am obviously _extremely_ upset right now, and you give me Bruce’s ice cream?” Tony asked incredulously. His judgement of Stephen and Wong’s favorite ice cream did not stop him from opening it.

“Your ice cream is crap,” Stephen replied.

“I did not come here to take this abuse,” he said, finally taking a bite. “I won’t forget this, Doc. In my hour of need…oh, that’s…oh, damn.”

“I know, right?” Stephen said, letting the dark fudge burst on his tongue. 

“Oh, that’s good. Why isn’t my ice cream this good?”

“It’s mimicking your bland and underwhelming personality.”

Tony threw his spoon at him. 

“Crap, now I don’t have any way to eat this.”

“Don’t look at me,” Stephen said. “I’m not going to help you. You threw a spoon at me.”

Tony looked Stephen in the eyes and then buried his face up to his nose into his pint.

Stephen laughed so hard he sputtered. “No, don’t! Cloak, would you please get him a spoon before he gets ice cream all over himself?” The Cloak took off towards the kitchen.

“It’s worth the chocolate nose, I’ll tell you that,” Tony said. Stephen laughed even harder at seeing Tony’s face covered in chocolate. The Cloak returned with a spoon and then used its own edges to clean the chocolate off Tony’s face. Stephen was absolutely charmed. If he hadn’t already fallen in love with Tony, this would have been what pushed him into the deep end.

“Thanks, buddy,” Tony said, using a proper utensil again. “I didn’t think this would work, but I actually do feel a little better. I can’t remember how long it’s been since I did this.”

Stephen took a bite of his ice cream and considered Tony. “I know what happened with the rogue Avengers. Everyone does.” He considered his next words carefully. “But what happened between _you_ and the rogue Avengers? I know you and Rogers fell out, but I don’t know why you fell so hard.”

Tony snorted an ugly laugh at that and rubbed his temples with the hand that wasn’t holding a spoon.

“It’s a really long story, Doc.”

“I have a lot of ice cream.”

Tony chuckled darkly, then looked down at Stephen’s shoes. He fiddled with his spoon for a moment then said, “I’d always thought my parents were dead because my dad was a functional alcoholic who drank too much one night and crashed his car. I thought he killed himself and my mom.”

He put his ice cream down, spoon still full. That was not what Stephen had been prepared to hear. He’d anticipated hearing about the Accords and government intrusion and maybe vast personality conflicts, but nothing that went so deep.

“I hated him for that,” Tony said. “For…years. For forever. I hated him. He killed my mom.” He took another spoonful of ice cream, closed his eyes as he enjoyed it for a moment before he spoke again. “But he didn’t. Turns out they were murdered by a Hydra agent. Code name Winter Soldier. His real name was James Barnes and he was Steve Roger’s childhood best friend.”

“By the Vishanti…” Stephen muttered under his breath.

“He was brainwashed,” Tony said, with a wave of his hand. Like this sort of this happened every day. “He was the gun, Hydra was the murderer. I know that now.

“But Steve Rogers knew his friend Barnes was my parents’ murderer and he left me in the dark for years. He used my money, my technology to look for my parents’ killer, and never told me the truth. He would have never told me the truth, except some asshole who wanted to destroy the Avengers got ahold of video footage…”

“Oh, hell,” Stephen whispered. He couldn’t imagine that kind of pain.

“Yeah. That was what the real fight was about. I mean, the airport fight, that was something else. That was the Accords. We were done with that, made up, kumbaya, time to go home. Then I found out about Barnes.

“I’d always known we weren’t really friends, you know?” Tony said, his eyes staring at some spot over Stephen’s shoulders. “I always knew he’d never got over his initial dislike of me. His absolute righteous _judgement_ that I was somehow lesser than him because I didn’t have a strict moral compass—“

“That’s a lie,” Stephen said boldly. He hadn’t meant to interject, but he couldn’t let that stand.

“Well, that’s what Cap thought. He always kinda looked at me like I was something he had to tolerate. And the rest of the team kinda followed his lead. Especially after Ultron. Maybe if Ultron hadn’t happened, we mighta had a chance but…”

Tony put his ice cream down on the floor, tapped his spoon against his palm.

“So Steve didn’t tell me his best friend killed my parents, we fought, they won, and they left me stranded in a Siberian bunker.”

“They what?” Stephen asked.

“Yeah. Cap drove a shield straight into my arc reactor. Thank God I didn’t need it to keep my heart running anymore.”

Stephen’s heart dropped to the floor. “And Steve Rogers is going to be allowed to come back to the Compound? Back to your _home_?”

“Yeah.” Tony leaned back in his chair and placed his hands on the arms. “And I just need to be okay with it. For the sake of national security. Hell, for the sake of Earth’s protection. Just another reminder that I don’t really matter to them. I never did. Steve apologized for what happened in a letter. Said the Avengers were mine.”

Stephen was so angry the fire was spitting sparks in the grate.

“Which was funny because he’d taken almost all of the Avengers with him when he flew the coop. I’m just so tired. All I want is a team I can rely on. All I want is to feel safe in my own home. To not have to fear Maximoff in my head or Rogers slamming his damn shield into me.”

Stephen was beside himself with rage. He felt like his face was on fire, and his hands were shaking for an entirely different reason than normal. He’d had no idea it was this bad. That Tony would have to endure such an insult in his own home. The idea that a man who had done so much for humanity—for all life in the universe—would be made to suffer such a slap in the face was unfathomable. 

Stephen had exactly one idea for how to comfort Tony. He reached out between their two chairs and slowly reached for Tony’s chest. Tony looked confused but stayed still, and Stephen marveled at the trust Tony showed him. Carefully, he parted Tony’s collar, belatedly realizing how intimate the gesture was, but it was too late. He found the thin gold chain and ran a finger across it. Then he took Tony’s hands in his again.

“You do you have a team, Tony. And you have a bondmate that will always be on your side. I swear it.”

“Will you?” Tony asked and suddenly Stephen’s hands were being grabbed, just a tiny bit too forceful for comfort. “Because no one’s ever only on my side. It’s either they’re on my side but not this time or they’re on my side but they’re busy with their own lives. Rhodey was with me while this was happening, but then he got hurt. It’s not his fault at all, but—“

“But you had to deal with the aftermath on your own.”

“Yeah,” Tony whispered. He shook his head, and the fire cast dancing shadows on his face. “So Doc, if you say you’re with me please, please—“

“Tony,” Stephen said, squeezing Tony’s hands as hard as he could. “I’m with you. I’m team Stark. I’m an Avenger. You’re my idiot. I have to protect you.”

Tony smiled. “That’s my line. Idiot.”

“Maybe Rogers is the idiot,” Stephen said, feeling warm. “Only an idiot would treat you that way.”

Tony’s eyes were glassy, and he smiled. “You’ll be there?”

“Wild horses,” Stephen replied.

“Thank you, Doc,” Tony said and released Stephen’s hands. “I can’t tell you how much of a—“

Their conversation was cut off by flickering lights and the sound of booming thunder. Stephen felt Tony’s panic mix with his own, and they both raced to the Sanctum’s front door. 

They stepped outside just in time to see a rainbow beam directly hit the currently empty Stark Tower. Lightning flashed and thunder roared at Thor’s arrival.

“He’s early,” Tony said, disgruntled and like a thunder god hadn’t just arrived on his front porch. Tony shook his head and pulled out his phone. “What a drama queen.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta. If you're on tumblr, come find me. It's mostly ironstrange, marvel, fan stuff. [my tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com)


	9. Axes and Hammers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enter Thor. I personally enjoyed what character development Thor: Ragnarok brought to Thor, so I'm trying to go with that Thor's characterization. He's a lot of fun to write, especially when he's interacting with Tony and Stephen. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who's left comments and kudos on this fic. I appreciate each and every one of them.

“Friday, get me the Secretary General,” Tony said into his phone. “It’s going to be a long night.”

“You got it, boss,” she replied.

Stephen watched as Tony tapped the nano casing unit on his chest, and the suit enveloped his body. And his phone.

Stephen squinted. “Did you—Did you just absorb your phone into the suit?” he asked. He realized it was ridiculous to be impressed by Tony’s phone being made of nanoparticles when Tony had used them to trap Thanos, but he couldn’t help himself. And making a phone was probably far more simple than the cannons he’d seen Tony create with them.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. That’s the great thing about nanoparticles. What do you think your phone is made of?” Tony said, giving Stephen a look of disbelief. 

“Right,” Stephen said, tapping his pocket to make sure his technological wonder—still without a case—was in there.

“Want a ride?” Tony asked, his face now covered.

“No, I’ll follow you,” Stephen said. “Go get my gloves,” he said to the Cloak, and watched as it zipped around the corner.

“Race you there,” Tony said and took off towards the tower.

Stephen smiled and allowed the Cloak to help him put on one glove while he created a portal with the other. He stepped through to the roof of Stark Tower just as Tony was touching down.

“Beat you,” they said at the same time. 

“No way!” Tony said, and even though he couldn’t see it, Stephen could tell he was smiling. “I totally touched down first!”

“Did not,” Stephen said. He put away his sling ring and allowed the Cloak to help him put on his other glove. “I stepped from the Sanctum to the tower in one step. You had to descend from the sky.” Stephen lifted an eyebrow. “I’m surprised you didn’t do a superhero landing.”

Tony’s face plate flew up. “Okay, I’ll bite. What’s a superhero landing?”

Giving Tony a face of wild disbelief, Stephen rolled his eyes and sighed. “Oh, come on. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“No, I really—hold on a second, Mr. Secretary General—I really don’t. Tell me. Exactly what is a superhero landing?”

“You do it all the time, Stark,” said a voice from the opposite side of the roof. Stephen automatically cast a shield and Tony fired up his gauntlets. “It’s when you land in a crouch and then look up to let your enemies see the cold of your false eyes.” 

Thor smiled then flew ten feet into the air while holding onto a giant axe. He landed with a fist on the ground and his legs spread apart. “Like this,” he said.

Tony and Stephen both dropped their hands. Tony looked from Thor to Stephen in disbelief for a moment before finally saying, “Fine, that’s fair. Point Break! You’re early, but it’s good to see you.”

“I’m glad to see you as well, Stark.” Thor placed a hand on Tony’s shoulder and grinned. “And wizard, how—“ Thor cut off whatever he was about to ask and looked between the two of them. The smile dropped from his face. It was like he was seeing something beyond them.

“Stark, have you bonded your soul to the wizard’s?” he asked, his tone somewhere between disbelief and dismay.

“Again, the preferred term is Master of the Mystic Arts. And yes, he did,” Stephen said. There was something about how Thor had said that, like his disbelief not only came from Tony having soul bonded with Stephen, but also that Tony had soul bonded with _Stephen_. 

The former was understandable. Thor had inherent magic himself. Of course he knew magic and could recognize deep, soul-altering spells like the one Stephen and Tony had performed. But Stephen wondered what it was exactly about himself that made Thor so surprised Tony had soul bonded to him in particular. 

He crossed his arms, suddenly feeling like a very ordinary man among gods and legends.

“Yeah, I did,” Tony said, putting a hand on Stephen’s shoulder and letting gentle reassurance trickle through their bond. Stephen felt his shoulders relax. “It’s a long story.”

“That’s a little…weird,” Thor said, pointing between the two of them. “Why would you do that?”

“Um, rude," Tony said, frowning.

“Yeah, I’m standing right here,” said Stephen and schooled his face to indifference. The Cloak puffed up like an angry cat.

“No offense meant, Strange. It’s just…you realize it’s permanent? Even when your souls enter Valhalla, you’ll still be bonded.”

“Uh, yeah, Thor,” Tony said, a bit of anger in his tone. “I know what soul bonding means. I wouldn’t get soul bonded without understanding exactly what I was getting myself into. Damn it! Is there such a thing as god-splaining? Cause there should be!”

Thor put up a hand. “I meant no disrespect. I was just surprised. I’m eager to hear the story of how you found such a worthy love.”

Stephen’s heart fell somewhere beneath his feet. The indifferent look he’d managed slipped, and he forced himself to maintain eye contact with Thor. Judging by the look Thor was suddenly giving Stephen, he had a feeling that the despair he was feeling was written all over his face.

“Yeah, we’ll tell you all about it,” Tony said. “But first, I’ve got the Secretary General of the UN on hold, so let me take this call. We can figure out what to do next in a minute.” Tony put his face plate down again and opened the closest glass door, stepping inside. Stephen heard him talking to the Secretary, leaving Stephen and Thor alone.

Stephen rocked on his heels a bit, steeling his features into what Wong always called his ‘resting bitch face.’

“So how have you been?” Stephen asked, and allowed just a hint of sarcasm to leak out.

“Terrible. Did you trick Stark into bonding with you?”

It was as though heat suddenly radiated out of every part of him: from the tips of his fingers, to his ears, to the points of his canines. Pain shot through him as he clenched his fists. Through clenched teeth, he asked, “Excuse me?”

Tony opened the glass door and stuck his head out, visibly concerned. “Everything alright?”

“Peachy,” Stephen said, then motioned for Tony to leave them be.

Thor waited until Tony had gone back inside, then said, “You have to understand, when my brother attacked New York, it was Stark who saved it. If it hadn’t been for him, more blood would have been on Loki’s hands.”

“I don’t see the connection between that and me doing something so unbelievably…reprehensible. And the last time I checked, your brother is his own person. You aren’t responsible for him,” Stephen said, this time letting his tone drip with sarcasm.

“No,” Thor said, “but I _feel_ responsible for him. His fall was…tremendous, and it was partly my doing. So, Stark saved my brother and the city from that bomb and the Chitauri. But, he also saved my conscience from having even more souls dead because of my failure with Loki.”

Thor’s axe twisted in his hands and the smell of rain and ozone flooded Stephen’s senses. 

“So please understand that I’m not trying to be insulting when I ask, did you force Stark to bind his soul to yours?”

Thunder boomed and lightning flashed across the sky. The Cloak billowed as Stephen tried to calm his temper.

He could understand why Thor had asked that, even though it was wildly insulting. He didn’t know Stephen, didn’t know anything about his character. He had no idea that Stephen would never in fourteen million lifetimes trap anyone into anything like a soul bond.

And with all the love bonds that he’d skimmed over in his research, Stephen knew there were far less invasive, less permanent bonds than the one he and Tony had.

So begrudgingly he said, “No. The soul bonding wasn’t a love match. We did it so we could share our powers. That’s how we defeated Thanos on Titan.”

Thor’s cold gaze continued to focus on Stephen’s, and he met it defiantly. He didn’t dare look away. This was one thing he was sure about. Fourteen million futures and this was the only one where they won. Let Thor judge him all he wanted, Stephen knew he’d made the right decision. Maybe he had his own issues with guilt over his love for Tony, but he wasn’t going to cower in the face of someone who had no idea what he and Tony had been through together.

“Alright,” Thor finally said after a moment, then lowered his axe. “No hard feelings, I hope.”

Stephen raised an eyebrow again, his face again a picture of indifference. “None.”

“Cool,” Thor said, patting him on the shoulder.

“No, not cool,” Tony said, from where he was leaning on the glass door. “I get that you don’t know Stephen, but you had no call to threaten him when you didn’t know the whole story.”

“What? I did not threaten,” Thor said, forcing a laugh like Tony and Stephen would just forget what had happened. 

Tony looked down towards the axe that still glinted in the moonlight.

Thor threw up his other hand. “All right, I might have _implied_ that horrible violence would be unleashed upon your bondmate should he give me an answer I didn’t like, but—“

“And this isn’t the first time you forgot to use your words,” Tony said, stepping close to Thor and putting a finger right in his face. “Ultron. Remember? Cause I do. I didn’t want to bring it up again, let sleeping dogs learn new tricks and whatever. Plus we were all under a lot of stress. But it wasn’t Stephen who had his hands around my neck.”

At this Thor looked properly chastened, and Stephen felt his magic crackle between his fingers. 

“What?” Stephen asked, trying to reign in the suddenly overwhelming need to attack first and ask questions later. That kind of behavior was counterproductive and literally what they had just been discussing. Still, he had to hold back the urge to open a portal to a hell dimension where he and Thor could…talk.

Thor and Tony just looked at each other for a moment, Tony’s features twisted in anger, Thor’s made of stone.

Finally, Thor’s shoulders fell, and he sighed. “You’re right, Stark,” Thor said, putting down his axe. “I never properly apologized, and to say we were stressed does not excuse my actions. In times of war, we are often pushed past our limits. We cannot take it out on our friends. I am sorry.”

“Sorry is great, but you just threatened Stephen. That’s not gonna fly,” Tony said. As Tony inch by inch put himself more between Thor and himself, Stephen felt his foolish heart soar.

Thor nodded. “Your bondmate. That was foolish of me. How can I make amends?”

Thor was a powerful ally. One that Stephen and Tony couldn’t afford to lose, especially with the rogue Avengers returning. They needed him on Tony’s side now more than ever. 

Stephen had an idea that might appease Tony. Thor might take it or he might not, but Stephen could at least propose it.

“Make me a promise, Thor,” Stephen said. “Promise me that you will not lift a hand against an ally in anger again,” Stephen said, extending his hand. His gloved hand glowed, and Thor seemed to know exactly what he was proposing.

“I will not,” Thor said, taking his hand. “I swear it.”

Their hands glowed and then the light vanished, sealing the pact.

“Okay, what exactly just happened?” Tony asked.

“We made a pact,” Stephen said. “The magic kind.”

“It’s a promise I’ll be glad to keep,” Thor said. “Truly.” He smiled and extended his arms. “Everything’s fine now.”

“Is it?” Tony asked Stephen.

Stephen was silent for a moment while he considered Thor. What remained of his shattered pride was insulted, but he understood where Thor had been coming from. Tony tended to inspire loyalty like that. And maybe a part of Thor’s protective question had come from guilt from his past behavior towards Tony.

Either way, a magical pact was something that couldn’t be broken. At least not easily. 

Plus, it looked like Thor would try his best not to break it.

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” Stephen said, letting it go.

“Okay, good,” Tony said, patting Stephen on the shoulder again. “Water under the sleeping dog. Excellent,” he tapped the nano casing, and his suit retracted. “So, Thor. You’re early. Like, really early.”

“Yes, I came to help prepare the way for my people. You know, smooth over any problems, help with negotiations.” He smiled broadly. “That sort of thing.”

“You came to help with negotiating?” Tony said, his tone full of doubt.

“Yes, of course! I’m a king, after all.”

“Right,” Tony said. “Well, first things first. I need to tell the UN just how many people are coming. How many were you able to find?”

The smile fell off Thor’s face. He let his eyes drop to his axe on the ground. Stephen had heard of the massacre of Thor’s people aboard the refugee ship from Doctor Banner, but he hadn’t given the topic the consideration it clearly deserved. 

In his defense, he’s been extremely busy at the time. 

“Three hundred and forty-seven.”

Stephen heard Tony take in a sharp gasp of air, and Stephen himself felt the last of his anger towards Thor melt away. 

Tony shifted nervously on his feet. “Out of—“ 

“Refugees? Twelve hundred and seventy-six. Out of my kingdom before my sister returned from her prison? Tens of thousands.” His eyes glistened in the moonlight and he sniffed and wiped his face. “Three hundred and forty-seven are all that remains of my people. Three hundred and forty-seven are my legacy.”

“Hey, Thor, no,” Tony said, walking up and grabbing Thor by the shoulders. “Your legacy is getting them here. It’s getting them off Asgard before shit went down, then going back and getting everyone who Thanos left alive.” Tony clenched his teeth and said, “You and me, we’re going to figure all this out, and we’re going to get your people a new home. You’ll all start over, right here on Earth. Alright?”

Thor smiled through his tears, and Stephen felt his heart nearly burst with love for Tony. This wasn’t even Tony’s problem or his people, but he was treating it like it was. Like he was personally invested in the Asgardians thriving in a new land. If Stephen wasn’t already deeply in love, that would have put him over.

“Alright, Stark. You’re right,” Thor said, sniffling. “Thank you, my friend.” Thor grasped Tony’s forearm in some semblance of a hand shake and Tony reciprocated. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You don’t have to worry about it, buddy. I got this. So, a few other things we wanted to get settled: we’re going to be building a small hospital, then schools of course, and an area for trade. But was there anything special your people would need in particular? I mean, I know we’re building you a swanky palace with a ridiculous throne room but anything else?”

Thor bent his head and seemed to look nervous. He looked down and fidgeted in his spot. “A library perhaps. There is actually something I need to tell you about. When we faced Thanos on the Statesmen—“

Before Thor could finish his statement, the golden sizzle of a portal cut him off, and Wong jumped through, ready for action. He immediately threw up his shields and shifted into a defensive stance. 

“I came as soon as I realized _you’d_ left,” Wong said to Stephen. “Where is the threat?”

“No threat, big guy,” Tony said, putting out a hand to calm Wong down. “Not unless you call Thor and Stephen in a dick measuring contest a threat. I’m pretty sure they’re good now though.”

“Yeah, we’re cool,” said Stephen.

“So cool,” said Thor.

Wong lowered his shields and looked over Thor for a moment before recognizing him.

“The god of thunder,” he muttered to himself. Stephen doubted anyone else could tell just how nervous and intimidated Wong suddenly was. “I am Wong,” he said. “A master of the mystic arts.”

“I am Thor,” he said, grasping Wong’s arm in—what Stephen now imagined—an Asgardian greeting. “We were discussing what Stark is going to inform the governing body that oversees the place my people are going to settle.”

“Speaking of the UN, uh, now that you’re here, Wong,” Tony said. Stephen could feel his apprehension, but he wasn’t sure what he had to be nervous about. “There is something I need to tell you. A couple heads of state have been asking about you.”

“Hmm,” Wong grunted. “Of course they have. And what did you tell them?”

“That I had no clue the name or affiliation of the man I was fighting alongside. They do know Stephen’s name, but I think that was to be expected.”

“He does have a very particular face,” Wong said.

Stephen frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“That you have a very particular face.”

“So getting away from Stephen’s face,” Tony interjected. “They know who you are, Stephen, but they don’t know Wong. And they don’t know about your Order. That doesn’t mean they won’t try to find you, but I figure if we make secrecy a condition of you joining the Avengers—“

“You’re joining the Avengers?” Wong asked.

Stephen’s eyes went wide and he muttered, “Oh, shit.” He rubbed his temples in a circular motion, feeling a headache coming on.

“Thank you, Tony. Thank you so much. Asshole.”

Tony sputtered. “I thought you would have told him by now! It’s been a week! Don’t you guys live in each other’s pockets?”

“We both have responsibilities that take us away from the Sanctum, Stark,” Wong said to Tony, then quickly turned a glare onto Stephen. “But that is no excuse. When were you planning on telling me this, Stephen? Or the elder sorcerers?”

Stephen shifted on his feet, knowing there was no good answer here. Yes, he’d been busy in the last week, but he’d had time to tell Wong. He just hadn’t.

And not particularly out of fear. The elder sorcerers didn’t own him. He may have feared complications and condemnation, but he knew there was no way he’d be kicked out. There were far too few sorcerers left, and besides that Stephen was bonded to _Iron Man_. 

There was no way they could overlook that.

And in addition to all that, Stephen had been partially responsible for saving the known universe. 

It wasn’t fear that held his tongue.

If he was being honest with himself, he had to admit a part of him just wanted to keep that secret between Tony and himself. Just for a little while. Soon enough the rogue Avengers would return or some new threat would pop up, and Stephen’s alliances would be known. 

But for right then, the fact that Stephen and Tony were a team was known only to them.

But he didn’t think he could explain all that to Wong, so he just said, “Soon?”

“You are unbelievable,” said Wong.

“Hey, Wong. Don’t be too hard on him,” Tony said, putting himself between Stephen and Wong like a living shield. “I haven’t told anyone yet either. I even barely floated the idea to Pepper. I figured we would figure out how to announce it, what he should ask the UN for, then we go from there,” Tony said.

Wong ignored him. “This will, without a doubt, expose us to the world.”

“No,” Stephen said firmly. “It doesn’t have to be that way. For all they know, I’m just another super powered individual with no allegiances. Which makes me a very convenient recruitment for the Avengers.”

“I agree with Strange,” said Thor, even though no one asked him. “And speaking of very convenient recruitments for the Avengers—“

**_THWIP_ **

The sound of web hitting the floor was immediately followed by Peter swinging in, out of breath and rambling.

“Oh, thank God! Iron Dad and Doctor Dad! I saw the rainbow light thingie, but I thought I might be too late. But obviously not since you’re both still here, and you seem okay. I’m so sorry it took me so long, but first I had to get here and then I had to climb to the top of the tower. Do you know how tall this tower is, Mr. Stark? It’s like really, really— _Oh my God, that’s Thor!_ ”

Peter abruptly turned away from Stephen and Tony, like they no longer existed. He only had wide, star-struck eyes for Thor. 

“Oh my God, you’re him! He’s you! You’re Thor! I can’t believe this is happening!” Peter whipped off his mask, then stuck out the hand holding it to Thor. “Oh God!” he cried, then flung the mask over his shoulder. “Sorry about that. I’m Peter. Peter Spider. I mean, Peter Parker. I’m Spiderman.”

Peter might have been awe-stricken, but Thor looked charmed. The sadness that had lingered when talking about his people was gone. Peter tended to have that effect on everyone he met, Stephen thought. It had taken hardly any time at all for Stephen to grow to love him. 

“This may be the most adorable child I’ve ever met,” Thor said. “Stark, is he yours?”

“Kinda,” Tony said at the same time Peter said, “Yes!”

“Well, I think of him as a son. That’s true enough,” Tony said. 

“The bonds of brotherhood can sometimes be stronger than blood,” Thor said, his tone low and solemn. “And speaking of bonds of brotherhood over blood—“

“You’re my favorite Avenger!” cried Peter. “Like, since I was a kid.”

“Um, what?” Tony said.

_Despair_

“Oh, Tony. I’m sure he didn’t mean it,” Stephen said.

“Mr. Stark, I didn’t mean it like that! I meant, _when_ I was a kid!” Peter shouted.

“For fuck sake,” Tony said to Stephen. “I think the kid actually hurt my feelings.”

Peter had definitely hurt Tony’s feelings. Stephen shrugged. “He hurt mine too. I want to be his favorite Avenger.”

“I mean, I’ve loved Iron Man since I was little,” Peter said to Thor, “but you were seriously my favorite.”

“Thank you, Peter,” Thor said. “But I believe your father may be about to cry.”

Tony sniffed. “No, I’m not,” he said, flicking away what he was trying to imply was sweat from his face. “But I will ask you to stop trying to steal my kid, Point Break.”

“Can I lift your hammer?” Peter begged, stars in his eyes.

“Actually…” Thor looked down at his axe for a moment, then looked back up and smiled. “Of course you can. Here,” he said, and handed what was obviously an axe to Peter. “I’ll help you steady it.”

Peter frowned as he looked at the axe. “Is this Mueller? It looks so different from all the pictures.”

“Mjolnir,” said Thor, taking Peter’s hand and carefully placing it on the hilt. “And it looks different up close, of course.”

“Oh, of course,” Peter whispered, completely mesmerized by the axe in his hand, the base still held by Thor.

“So, are you ready?” Thor asked. “Are you worthy, Peter?”

“Um,” Stephen said.

“I’ve been ready for this my whole life,” Peter said, his voice trembling.

Stephen pulled Tony aside and said, “I feel like maybe we should say something here.”

Tony put on his sunglasses. “At this point I think it might be too late.”

“I knew it!” Peter whispered to himself, tears falling down his face as he held Thor’s axe with no aid from Thor himself. “I am worthy.” He sobbed and thrust the axe towards the sky. Thor took a step away from him and called down lightning so it danced across the New York skyline. 

“Oh, he’s definitely Peter’s favorite now,” Stephen said to Tony.

Tony made a little huffing sound that was just barely audible over the crashing of thunder. Stephen couldn’t help the laughter that escaped. 

“I will fight him,” Tony said.

“Thank you, Mr. Thor,” Peter said, sniffling. “Thank you so much.”

“It’s an honor, Peter Parker, son of Stark.”

Thunder boomed and New York lit up, almost as bright as Peter.

“You know what?” Tony said, sighing and gesturing towards Peter. “I’m not even mad. Look how happy he is.”

Lightning continued to dance across the sky in a spectacular display of power. Stephen looked away from it, to Peter. He eyes were still locked to the sky, tears streaming, and the biggest smile Stephen had ever seen on his face.

“I see what you mean, Stephen,” Wong said, looking to Peter. “He has a good soul. It’s no wonder you love him like a son.”

“Peter’s gonna have a lot of dads,” Stephen said.

“Nope. Two dads, one hot aunt, and a whole lotta uncles,” Tony said, and both Stephen and Wong whipped their heads to the side to stare at him.

“What?” Tony said, putting his hands in his pockets. “Oh, come on, Doc. You have eyes. May is clearly a very beautiful woman.”

“Right,” Stephen said, nodding and completely willing to let Tony believe that was why he and Wong stared. “She is.” Stephen took a deep breath and reminded himself to not read into things so much. It didn’t mean anything when Tony said things like that.

“That’s promising,” Wong whispered to Stephen.

“Don’t start,” said Stephen.

“Okay, while they’re literally playing with thunder and lightning, we should go inside and talk about this Avengers thing. I don’t want there to be any bad blood between you and Stephen,” Tony said, leading the way inside.

“That’s also a good sign,” Wong said to Stephen as they followed Tony inside.

“That’s basic kindness,” Stephen muttered under his breath.

Wong nodded. “And caring for his bondmate.”

Stephen couldn’t say anything to that. If anything, Tony had shown more than enough that he cared for Stephen. The fact that he and Wong had a solid roof over their heads was proof enough.

“Okay, so,” Tony said, clapping his hands. “The Accords are still a thing, but they’re going to be modified. I spoke with the UN and we reached an agreement where the Accords can be adapted to each individual member of the Avengers. All we need to do is include a confidentiality clause for Stephen’s contract, and we’re good.”

Stephen nodded. He’d had only a passing understanding of what the Accords were before, but that seemed reasonable. And he trusted Tony, if not the United Nations.

“I know you believe that is true, Stark, but you cannot guarantee that our order will be protected. There would be no real way to make sure they could not track Stephen to Kamar-Taj,” Wong said. 

“There’s no way we can guarantee they won’t track when you leave the Sanctum,” Stephen said. “Facial recognition software is advancing, and there are cameras everywhere. I’m surprised they haven’t found out who you are by now.”

Wong’s frown deepened, and he crossed his arms. “So, your reasoning for joining the Avengers is that the United Nations will find out about our order eventually?”

“Well, no—“

“And I have been limiting my trips out of the New York Sanctum for that very reason,” Wong said. “Or have you not noticed?”

Stephen hadn’t noticed, but then, between the repairs, casting wards, visiting Kamar-Taj, and dealing with Tony, Stephen wasn’t too surprised.

“So, what we need is something that will screw with facial recognition software for the both of you?” Tony said, hands up in question. “Is that your only objection?”

Wong was silent for a moment before he nodded. “You are bondmates. It’s Stephen’s responsibility to protect you, and yours to protect him.”

“Okay,” Tony said, nodding. “I can do that.”

Frowning, Stephen asked. “What? Create something that distorts facial recognition software?”

“Uh, like it’s hard? I helped invent that software. I can definitely create something tiny that can be hidden in robes that could mess with it. Give me a few days. Until then, use your—“ He used his hands to signify a portal and grinned.

“Okay,” Stephen said. “I can do that. Wong?”

With a straight face, Wong nodded. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Ha!” Tony laughed. “Wong is Luke!”

“Or Han,” Stephen said. “Or Leia.”

“Or 3PO,” they said at the same time.

“You are perfect for each other,” Wong said, shaking his head. They all walked outside again, naming characters in the prequels and sequels who said the legendary line.

The lightning and thunder had stopped, but Peter and Thor were out of sight.

“Pete!” Tony shouted. “Peter, where—“

“Mr. Stark!” Peter said joyfully. The three men turned to the floor where they’d heard Peter.

He was lying on his back, a look of pure joy on his face. His arms were thrust straight up where he was holding Thor, who was doing a great impression of a plank of wood while Peter bench pressed him.

“Look what I can do!” Peter said, then did a rep with his Thor-weight. 

“That’s…great, kid. Really great,” Tony said.

“Mr. Thor says he weighs six hundred pounds!” Peter cried.

“You realize I recruited you when I saw a video of you catching a bus, right?” asked Tony.

“Let him have this,” said Stephen.

Tony sighed. “Alright, you two have fun,” he said to Peter and Thor. “I’m going to call the UN back,” Tony said, tapping his nano casing and letting the suit flow over him. “Peter, you want to show Thor where my penthouse is once you’re done playing?”

“Stark, I did need to speak with you about something.” Thor shifted his weight and did a little flip from where Peter was holding him.

“So cool,” Peter whispered.

“Uh, just a sec—just a moment, Mr. Secretary. No, really not like last time,” Tony said, retracting his face plate. “Is it urgent? I don’t wanna put this guy on hold again.”

Thor stuttered a bit, then said, “No. Of course not. Thank you for all you’re doing for my people. I’ll see you later tonight.”

“Yeah, I’ll be up. Without a doubt. Wong, see you soon. Text me, Doc,” Tony said to Stephen, almost like an afterthought, before he stopped. Stephen knew Tony was extremely busy. He wouldn’t have held it against him if he’d said goodbye so offhandedly. 

“Um, Stephen,” Tony said, taking a few steps backwards so Stephen would walk with him. “So tonight was…nice, right?”

Stephen locked his hands behind his back so he wouldn’t wring his hands together. “You mean the very short family game night, the talking about our pasts and futures, or the part where a Norse god showed up?”

“Ha ha, yes,” Tony said. The smile he gave Stephen made his heart flutter. The little combustion engine that hid behind Stephen’s heart purred. “No, really, I had a good time. We should do this again.”

He meant they should do family game night again, Stephen told himself. He meant they should become better friends. That having a good strategy when dealing with Rogers and Maximoff was mutually beneficial. His heart did not skip a beat.

“Of course,” Stephen said. “Every other Tuesday.”

“Yeah, well I was thinking maybe just you and me. You know, this is nice. It’s good to know the guy who’s…already a part of me.”

Stephen nodded. That made perfect sense. “Sure. Um, I had fun, too. It was…nice.”

Ugh.

“Good. Okay. I’ll text you,” Tony said, flashing Stephen one last smile, then flew off towards the penthouse.

“That was even more promising,” Wong said.

Stephen just about jumped out of his skin. “Don’t do that!”

“He was flirting with you. That’s a good sign.”

“He was not,” Stephen said. Really, Stephen could maybe see where Wong was coming from, but Tony flirted with everyone. It was just how he tended to talk to people. He’d seen him flirt with May tonight, and it hadn’t meant a thing. “Or not the way you’re thinking at least.”

“Stephen, I did not see him give that smile to Thor. And he is _Thor_.”

There was no way, Stephen reminded himself. Tony didn’t think of him that way. There was no chance, and he had no desire to set himself up for heartbreak. He’d put himself through too much already.

His thoughts must have been splashed all over his face, because Wong just nodded and said, “I suppose time will tell. I’ll be back at the Sanctum.” He said his goodbyes to Peter and Thor and left in a golden portal.

Stephen was tempted to follow him. He was exhausted from his long day, and from the emotional roller coaster he rode with Tony tonight, but he also felt obligated to babysit Peter and Thor.

And speaking of Thor…

Thor had tried quite a few times to tell Tony something that seemed to be important. Whatever it was had Thor looking very nervous, which made Stephen nervous.

“Is anything wrong?” Stephen asked.

“No!” Thor said. “No, nothing’s wrong. Everything’s fine. It’s all going to work out okay in the end.”

“Uh huh.” Yeah, Stephen was definitely worried now.

“Mr. Thor, does your hair get all static-like when you’re casting lightning?” Peter asked.

“I’ll speak with Stark later. It’ll be fine,” Thor said, then turned back to Peter.

*

Five days later and Tony still hadn’t had a chance to talk with Thor. He’d gotten on the phone with the Secretary General and other various officials and had been going nonstop pretty much ever since.

He hadn’t even had a chance to talk to Stephen until today.

And he found that more and more, he really wanted to talk with Stephen.

He hadn’t felt this much promise in a friendship since he’d met Rhodey back at MIT. And Rhodey was worth his weight in vibranium to Tony. Rhodey’s friendship meant everything.

And Tony felt like his friendship with Stephen could be just as great. Maybe even more, if only because of the soul married thing. 

Either way, Tony found himself very hopeful of a new friendship, in a way he hadn’t been in literal decades. He hadn’t lied when he’d told Stephen that he wanted to be friends. He’d meant it from the first time he’d said it on Titan.

But he hadn’t known how successful it could be. Just the idea of it made him happy.

He found himself wanting Stephen’s company so much, that he figured he’d invite Stephen along for the outing to New Asgard today.

“Hey, Doc,” Tony said into the speakerphone on his jet. “You busy?”

“Hi, Tony. A bit. I’ve just finished up lessons at Kamar-Taj for the evening. What’s up?” Stephen asked. 

“On our way to New Asgard, currently Norway. Say hi, Thor.”

“Hello, wizard.”

“Hello, thunder god.”

“Awesome. So, can you meet us there? We should be touching down in about an hour, then driving over…maybe meet in about an hour and a half?”

There was silence on Stephen’s end and Tony held his breath. 

“Sure, that’ll give me enough time to finish up here. Send the coordinates, and let me know when you’ve arrived.”

Tony exhaled. “Okay. Sending now.”

Tony ended the connection and smiled, tapping his hands on his thighs in anticipation. 

“Hmm,” said Thor.

“What?”

“Nothing. Just…good to see you so happy, Stark. Bonding suits you.”

“Thanks. Yeah, I am happy. Way happier than I thought I’d be. It’s all working out really well.”

“Well, life does that sometimes, doesn’t it?” Thor said. “Sometimes something happens that…is really weird, but it all works out in the end.” He smiled at Tony and said, “And speaking of—“

“Boss, the contractor from Oslo is on the line. It looks like they’re having a problem securing enough lumber for the project.”

“Uh, yeah give me a sec, Fri. I’ll take the call in the bedroom.” He stood up and tapped Thor on the shoulder. “Sorry, big guy. I’ll be right back.”

Tony ended up taking one call after another and before he knew it, they were in the car arriving at the site of New Asgard. He needed to hire a new personal assistant. Or he needed to write new code for Friday so he could delegate more. There was no way he could keep going like this.

He and Thor exited their car and took in the beautiful Norwegian—soon to be New Asgardian—sunset. Tony leaned back against the car with his hands in his pockets, his gaze half on the beautiful scenery, half on Thor.

Thor was looking around the field in awe, like it was something out of a dream. The cliff that led to the sea kept drawing his eyes away, but Thor kept coming back to the land where their settlement would soon be.

“Stark. This land… How could you have known—“

“I didn’t know anything,” Tony said, taking off his sunglasses. “Not until just now. I knew there was an energy signature that was released here. I knew that when we investigated, we found pieces of metal that had once been your hammer. But I wasn’t sure.”

“I thought perhaps Strange had said something,” Thor said.

Tony frowned. “Why would Stephen know about this place?”

“Because I was the one who brought him and his brother here,” Stephen said, exiting a portal.

“Hey, Doc!” Tony said, coming over to Stephen and giving him a one-armed hug.

“Hi, Tony,” Stephen said, awkwardly returning the hug. “A few months ago, Thor and Loki briefly came to Earth to speak with their father. It was his passing that put out that unusual energy signature.”

“This place, means so much to us,” Thor said. “I cannot tell you how grateful I am to you, Stark. Strange.” Thor turned to them, tears in his eyes. “This was my father’s final wish for our people. I didn’t know it at the time, but he did. He knew Asgard’s time was over. He knew that the bill for his deeds was finally coming due, and that his sons and his people would be the ones who would have to pay it.”

Tony let his shoulders brush Stephen’s. He gave him a curious look and mouthed _what?_

Stephen shrugged, but put a finger to his mouth to indicate they should let Thor talk.

“As much as I hate the fate of Asgard, I know that it had been a long time in coming. We could not enjoy the spoils of Odin’s wars forever.” He sat down on a rock and faced the sunset. “But that Asgard is over now. New Asgard is only beginning.” He smiled and turned to Tony. “And I have you to thank for that, my friend.”

This was the best consequence to having the wealth and power Tony had. Being able to help his friends, and people who really needed it, made everything else worth it. “I’m glad I can help. Really, Thor.”

“This is not something that New Asgard will forget. Ever. We are forever in your debt.” Thor stood and summoned his axe from its place in the backseat of the hired car. 

“Me and my people will always support you and yours, Stark,” Thor said, pointing to Stephen. “I swear it. And it is no light thing to have two promises from a god.”

“Yeah, I got that,” Tony said. “And I’m grateful.” A part of him wanted to bring up the fallout between himself and the other Avengers, but Tony couldn’t bring himself to bring darkness onto what was such a beautiful occasion. He just couldn’t wipe that smile from Thor’s face. “We haven’t even discussed the dynamics between the Avengers right now, but that can wait until a later day.”

“Indeed.” Thor said, resting his axe against his thigh. “Well, whatever is happening between the Avengers, you can rest assured that the sons of Odin will be on your side.”

“Thank you, Thor. Wait—” Tony said, a cold chill running through him.

“Did you just say _sons_ of Odin?” Stephen asked.

Like a sonic boom, a charged blue light appeared in the middle of the field. Twisting and turning, the light seemed as though it was trying to expand itself like a portal, until finally it grew enough to allow someone through.

Tony knew exactly who it was, but he was frozen to the spot. Loki looked exhausted and dirty, his leathers bloodied and torn. There were deep bruises all around his neck and his eyes looked bloodshot. 

Thor went to him, to help him up, and Tony broke out of his trance.

“I thought he was dead,” he said quietly. Memories of the last time he’d seen Loki took hold. Images of the worm hole flooded his senses. Cold sweat drenched his body and he couldn’t catch his breath. “Thor?”

Softly, a calloused, shaking hand took his own.

It was enough. The light touch helped ground him, helped him see the sunshine again. His heart was still beating faster than he liked, but he could feel the worst of it subside.

“Yes, my brother lives!” Thor said happily, completely unaware of how Loki’s sudden appearance had affected Tony and Stephen. “I found him among the ruins of our ship. Gladly, he is a god. Not as easy to kill as Thanos thought.”

Loki didn’t seem to be even a shadow of his former self. Whatever he had been through recently, it had left a terrible mark.

“So sorry to disappoint, Stark,” Loki said, his voice hoarse. “But reports of my death have been—“ Loki cut himself off as he finally looked around and saw Stephen. 

“You…” Loki hissed.

_Anticipation_

_Fear_

_Amusement_

Stephen released Tony’s hand. He took two steps away from Tony, the Cloak billowing majestically and lifting Stephen a foot off the floor.

“Me,” Stephen said and arranged his hands in what Tony knew was an attack position.

“Now, brother…” Thor said, but it was too late.

Loki conjured an ice blade that Stephen barely deflected with a shield, and the fight was on. 

Tony immediately tapped his nano casing to suit up, but Thor stopped his hand. 

“Honestly, Stark, it’s better to let them get this out of their system now. If they don’t, it’ll be like herding cats whenever we have meetings.”

“Um, what?” Tony said.

“Avengers meetings. Loki’s joining the Avengers, of course,” Thor said.

Tony was only half-listening, but everything he was hearing sounded like Thor was absolutely out of his mind. He watched as Stephen sent a portal over to Loki, which he narrowly side-stepped.

“You’re trying to get rid of me again, you cheap conjurer! Stop trying to make me go away, and fight me!” Loki screamed and his voice sounded like nails on a chalkboard.

“Okay,” Stephen said, and red, burning ropes shot out of his hands, wrapping around Loki’s neck and shoulders. “If you really prefer it this way.”

“Oh, maybe not the neck, Strange,” Thor said in a voice that was absolutely too calm for this situation. “Kind of a sensitive area right now.” Stephen didn’t appear to be listening and Thor just sighed and said, “I should heed my own advice.”

He sat down on a large rock and put his hands on his thighs. “That’s what I’ve been meaning to talk to you about for the past week,” Thor said, gesturing to Stephen and Loki. He was talking to Tony like they weren’t trying to kill each other ten feet away from them.

“What?!” Tony shouted.

“Loki joining the Avengers. He’s redeemed himself! He’s proven to me that he’s reformed and that he wants to help me rule New Asgard. Honestly, Stark, it was one of the happiest moments of my life.”

Loki broke free of the red burning ropes with a sharp blast of ice that knocked Stephen off his feet. 

“Stephen!” Tony shouted and ran to go to him, but Thor stopped him. 

“Trust me on this, Stark. Just let them fight it out. It’ll be fine.” Thor literally lifted Tony from his middle and placed him back on the ground next to him. “Honestly, I thought I’d lost him forever after Thanos attacked. It wasn’t until I went back looking for survivors that I found him. I cannot tell you the relief I felt when I saw him. I thought I’d lost everything. My entire family.”

The Cloak levitated Stephen into the air and Stephen created a dozen duplicates of himself, all creating a lightning rope that bound Loki to the ground.

“Is this supposed to be a waking nightmare, Strange?!” Loki shouted. “So many of you that I’ll just let you kill me?”

“No, but whatever works for you,” the Stephens said and tightened the ropes.

Tony started chewing his nails. “Aren’t you the least bit concerned?”

“That Loki will betray me again? I suppose so, but I know that if he does he will make it up to me at the last minute somehow and I will forgive him. Is it the perfect relationship? No, of course not. But I would not and could not change Loki. That much wisdom I have learned over the past few years. Loki is Loki. Accept him or let him go.”

“No, Thor! Aren’t you worried they’re literally going to kill each other?!” Tony cried.

Beams of light shined from Loki’s entire body, breaking the lightning ropes and sending Stephen back into one.

“No, Stark,” Thor said, like _Tony_ was the crazy one. “Just let them get the bad blood out. It’ll be fine.”

“Oh, God,” Tony muttered as he saw Loki conjure a dozen extremely sharp looking knives and sent them Stephen’s way while he was still trying to recover from the last attack.

“Stephen, look out!” Tony said, then watched in horror as two of the knives made it through his hastily-made shield. 

Spitting out blood, Stephen stood up, his tunic torn off one shoulder and down to his biceps. He looked like a man about to win a war, like controlled fire and effortless victory in human form. He looked like a page right out of Tony’s fantasy book: beautifully built, competent, and sexy as hell. 

The thought struck Tony speechless. 

Standing there, watching a half-shirtless Stephen bleed on a battlefield was one of the hottest things Tony had ever seen, and he had no idea what to do with that. 

“Oh, my God,” Tony muttered because he was truly fucked now. Because Stephen just conjured a burning blade and jumped twenty feet in the air to attack Loki with it. 

Loki conjured a blade of ice and the two engaged in a duel like Tony had never seen before. It was almost like a dance as they moved around each other, both so skilled they rarely made a hit. 

Finally, the Cloak successfully allowed Stephen to get the drop on Loki, and he made a deep cut to his shoulder. 

“You cur!” he shouted at Stephen. “Second-rate sorcerer, you think you can beat me?!” 

Loki closed his eyes for a moment and the very ground started to shake, and Tony saw all his plans for New Asgard fall apart before his eyes.

“No!” Thor shouted, for once stepping in between the two sorcerers. He struck his axe in the field between Stephen and Loki and took Loki by the shoulders.

“You will not damage our home, brother.”

Wild-eyed and bloody, Loki no longer looked angry. Loki looked hurt.

“But, brother—“

“No, Loki! This is the place where our people will start a new life. We cannot do that if you’ve destroyed the foundation. Plus, look where we are, brother.”

For the first time since he got here, Loki took a look around. His eyes seemed clear of whatever rage he’d been in before and he dropped his hands. “Oh,” he said.

“Yes, oh,” Thor said, wrapping an arm around his brother. “I hope you got it out of your system because I’ve already sworn our allegiance to Stark and his family.”

“Family?” Loki said, confused. “Stark has a family?”

He looked between Stephen and Tony, squinted, then said, “Oh, eww. Why, Stark? Ugh. I thought you had taste.”

Stephen conjured his flaming sword again and Tony was about to have a breakdown. In his pants. He got ahold of himself, and held Stephen back from attacking Loki again.

“Easy, Doc,” Tony whispered, trying his hardest to keep his hands on some of the remaining cloth of Stephen’s tunic. “He’s just mad he lost.”

“You could have bonded to literally anyone else, and it would have been a better pick,” Loki said, visibly disgusted. “That rock over there would be a better bondmate than that dime-store magician.”

“This dime-store magician has kicked your ass twice, god of— What was it?” Stephen asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Crying and falling?”

Both wizards struggled to get away from their betters, but Tony and Thor held on.

“Okay, fight’s over,” Tony said, grabbing Stephen and physically hauling him away from Loki, while Thor did the same for Loki. And Tony was definitely trying to not notice how firm Stephen’s chest was under Tony’s hands. How his hair fell in the most beautiful way to frame his face. Even the little cuts on his cheekbones…

“Hey, Doc, you’re bleeding,” Tony said, snapping out of it. Again. “I think I got a first aid kit in the car. Can you get it, Red?” 

The Cloak nodded and flew off.

“Are you okay?” Tony asked, moving the sleeves of Stephen’s tunic so he could see how bad the cuts were. 

They weren’t bad at all really. Probably didn’t need stitches, but that didn’t stop Tony from being mesmerized by the shape of Stephen’s arms. What else was he hiding under all these layers?

“Tony?” 

“Yeah?” Tony said, snapping out of it. For a third time. _Get it together, Stark._ “Yeah, um, yes. You seem okay. Are you?”

“Yes, I’m fine. I’m a doctor. I know when I need medical attention. But are you okay? You seem…flustered. And upset.”

The Cloak returned just then with the kit, and Tony got to work cleaning and closing up the small wounds on Stephen’s arms. 

“Yeah, I’ve just never really seen you in action, Doc. I mean, when we faced off with Squidward, I was pretty distracted. Then I was the one who kinda went face to face with Thanos. Not that you didn’t have a really important part, of course.”

Stephen chuckled. “Of course.”

“But I gotta say, that was impressive.” Tony smiled in a way that he knew made his eyes pop, and didn’t want to consider what that move meant. But he could see Stephen’s shy reaction. How he blushed and looked down to his lap.

And that made Tony stop.

What was he doing? He was flirting with Stephen. Sweet, precious Stephen, his bondmate who was in love with him. What was he thinking? This wasn’t just some guy he was attracted to, could maybe take home and that was that. Stephen was his husband. Stephen would be an Avenger. Peter loved Stephen. Stephen was so entwined in Tony’s life and that was the way Tony wanted it.

And Tony just considered throwing it all away for the opportunity to flirt with him. All flirting would accomplish was playing with Stephen’s emotions. Tony couldn’t do that. Not to anyone, but especially not to Stephen.

_Pull yourself together, Stark._

All Tony knew for sure was that this just got a lot more complicated.

“All better,” Tony said, lightly patting Stephen’s arm.

“Thank you, Tony,” Stephen said shyly, and Tony could feel the little butterfly fluttering behind his heart.

“Get a room!” Loki yelled. “No, brother,” he said to a whispering Thor, “if I have to watch one more second of this I’m going to start another Ragnarok.”

“Hey, Prancer!” Tony finally shouted. “Lay off Stephen or I’m not building you a library.”

That calmed Loki down. “Library?” He looked interested for a moment before he caught Stephen’s gaze again and sneered. “Do you even know what books are, Strange?”

“No library, gotcha,” Tony said, just as a portal started to form under Loki’s feet.

“No, wait!” Loki shouted as he jumped on Thor’s shoulders. “I suppose I can be civil, if he can.”

“That’s good, because Strange is also an Avenger,” Thor said, allowing Loki to drop. “So you’ll be seeing a lot of each other. _And you will get along._ ”

Somehow, even though he was battered and bloodied and looked as though he was about to drop any second, Loki still looked dangerous. Tony watched as someone who had once been the world’s biggest threat engaged in a staring contest with his older brother.

At the end of it, Loki didn’t say anything. He just nodded, turned to look at the sunset, and collapsed onto a rock. Thor stood next to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

“You were right, brother,” Thor said, just loudly enough for Tony to hear. “The sun is shining on us again.”

Apparently, the Cloak had more tact than both Stephen and Tony. Tony hadn’t realized he’d been staring, and it looked like Stephen hadn’t either. The Cloak ushered the both of them back to the car to give the brothers a moment of privacy.

“Of course I was right, you oaf,” Tony heard Loki say. “When have I ever been wrong?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enter Loki. Honestly, his scene with Stephen in Ragnarok was an absolute gift, and I look forward to him being a lovable asshole. Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta. If you're on tumblr, come find me. [my tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com)


	10. The Coney Island Incident

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has left kudos and commented. It means so much to me when you let me know that you're enjoying this fic. I'm having so much fun writing it, and knowing you enjoy it mean so much to me. Thank you! 
> 
> This chapter was fun to write because I finally got to give Rhodey some screen time. We also see dad!Wong and scarf!Cloak.

“Face it, Stark,” Secretary Ross drawled, slowly pacing around the room. His gait was long and lazy, like he had all the time in the world and more than enough power to intimidate Tony. 

Tony yawned. After Thanos, there wasn’t much that scared him. 

Ross smirked but didn’t take the bait. “You’ve put this off for too long because you knew where this was headed,” Ross said. “You hid away Doctor Strange and his companion, but then Thor leaves a marker the size of a giant rainbow on your old tower. Then the Tesseract’s energy signature pops up for all of five seconds, coincidentally in New Asgard.”

He pulled out a cigar from an inner jacket pocket and lit it with a wooden match. Tony rolled his eyes and wished DUM-E was here to put the fire out.

“Now you’re out of time. We’re zeroing in on your enhanced friends, and we know you’re hiding Loki somewhere in this tower. That alone is a felony. Plus, there’s the outstanding court martial for Colonel Rhodes,” he said, gesturing to Rhodey. 

Tony tapped a finger against his chair, and he knew Rhodey was standing behind him with his arms crossed.

“So, here’s what’s going to happen: you’re going to turn over Loki and you’re going to give me the name of the enhanced. Then you’re going to get Doctor Strange here to sign the accords. And you’re going to do it now.” He puffed his cigar smoke towards Tony’s face.

Completely unwarranted display of assholery, especially since Tony had frequented bars and casinos for years and was practically immune to the stuff.

Still, A plus for effort.

“That was really well done,” Tony said, finally sitting up straight in his chair. “Wasn’t that cute, honey bear?”

“As a button,” Rhodey said, his voice amused but hard.

“I thought the cigar was a bit much. Friday, what do you think?”

“It _was_ a little over the top, boss,” Friday said.

“You’re not just saying that?” Tony asked.

“No, by my calculations it was at least twenty-four percent over the top.”

“Oh, she did that math,” Tony said. “Good to know. Yeah, no. I’m not going to do any of that,” he said, pointing a finger in Ross’ face and waving it around. “So while you’ve been busy blowing my phone up—honestly, ever heard of ghosting? Look it up—I’ve been talking to the United Nations. You know, the governing body that’s _actually_ in charge of the Accords. And guess what?”

“He’s not gonna guess, Tony,” Rhodey said.

“Hey, maybe he will. He’s a sharp guy.”

“Not that sharp,” Rhodey said.

“Okay, I’ll just tell him,” Tony said, with a grand wave, like he was revealing a great secret. “Absolutely none of that is going to happen. You are such a bad liar, I have no idea how you got so far in politics.”

Ross’ face twisted in annoyance, but Tony could see a flush spread from his collar. “You have no idea, Stark—“

“Oh, no,” Tony said, holding up a hand. “I do. For example, I know that you didn’t want to pardon Rogers’ part of the team. Rhodey was in the room when you argued against it, or did you forget?”

“Didn’t know I was so forgettable,” Rhodey said. “Kinda hurts my feelings.”

“I could never forget you were in a room, honey bear.”

“I know, Tony.”

“Public opinion has come around again. You missed your chance, Ross. The world is _terrified_ , and they have every right to be. And luckily, instead of pouring billions into weapons that wouldn’t stand a chance against higher lifeforms, the governments of the world are ready to negotiate with the Avengers.”

“I’m not talking about the United Nations, Stark,” Ross said. “I’m talking about the United States government. Or have you forgotten where the Avengers began? Or where your business is located?” He took another puff of his cigar. He looked like an unhappy walrus sucking on a carrot.

“You realize there’s absolutely nothing keeping the Avengers located in America?” Rhodey said. 

The smug expression melted off Ross’ face. It was like he’d never considered that the Avengers were people who could just…leave.

Oh, Tony loved it when Rhodey played bad cop. He was so good at it.

“Now, Rhodey, most of the Avengers are Americans," Tony said. “And we like it here. There’s no reason to leave…oh, unless you get court martialed.” Tony tapped his lips in feigned thought. “And if soldiers were to suddenly storm my compound for a god who could literally just pop out of here, that would probably compel me to move the compound to…oh, I don’t know. New Asgard?”

“Might be bad for everyone,” Rhodey said, thoughtfully. “But especially bad for politicians looking to get reelected. Big bad alien army just drops out of the sky and you just…throw away the only people who can save you?”

Ross looked between the two of them, eyes hard but cheeks flushed. Tony knew they were playing a dangerous game. But it was one he was certain they would win. He’d worked too hard for it to go badly.

The little butterfly behind his heart flapped its wings in anticipation. Tony had the mental image of Stephen hiding behind his heart, watching and eating popcorn.

Without saying a word, Ross pulled up a chair, put out his cigar, and sat down. He looked to Tony and Rhodey, and the give of his shoulders told them they’d won.

“So glad you see it our way,” Tony said, and gave the nastiest smile he could. What he was about to say would be so satisfying, and he was going to enjoy every second of it. “So here’s what’s actually going to happen. First, you’re not going to court martial Rhodey. That was never going to fly, and I have no idea why you thought I’d _allow_ it.”

Ross’ lips twisted, even through the mustache, and Tony could see him hold himself back.

“Second, you’re gonna back off the Avengers. _All_ the Avengers. The Accords as they were are done,” Tony said, making a striking motion across his throat. “They’re gone. Thrown out. Every Avenger will have a custom-written contract specific to them and their needs while also balancing responsibility to the global community.”

“In short, what you should have done in the first place,” Rhodey said. 

“Loki’s agreed to plead his case before the Hague, and I have it on good authority that—due to extenuating circumstances we didn’t know at the time—he’s going to be offered community service. Then he’ll sign the Accords as well.

“Doctor Strange will sign the Accords, but his companion has decided to remain anonymous. And we _will_ respect that.”

Tony let that sit for a moment, watching and waiting for Ross to attack like the cornered animal he was.

He didn’t have to wait long.

“Having an agreement with the UN is all well and good, Stark, but keep in mind who has the infrastructure, let alone the firepower to back you up,” Ross said, and it seemed impossible, but he looked perfectly calm and collected while he was losing everything he’d hoped to gain. “What happens when you need boots on the ground for the next monster that comes knocking? Or when Loki makes another power grab? Who’s going to help keep him in line?”

“Uh, the Hulk?” Tony said, shrugging.

Ross’ face fell. It was like pushing a button. Mention Jolly Green and watch Ross’ mustache try to fall off his face. “And who controls the Hulk, Stark?”

“Banner,” Tony said simply. “It might be time for you to kiss a little ass. Friday, call Bruce and the gang in here.”

“What is this?” Ross said, and finally he sounded as horrified and disgusted as Tony knew he would be.

Tony let the smug smile slip off his face. He leaned forward and said, “This is what happens when you threaten me and my friends. This is what happens when you try so hard to grab hold of power: it slips through your slimy fingers. This is you finally getting what’s coming to you, you son of a bitch.”

The door opened and Bruce and an army of Tony’s lawyers walked through the door.

“Hey, guys,” Bruce said, lifting up a hand in a gentle wave. “Long time, no see, General. How have you been?”

“You can’t be serious,” Ross said, glaring at Bruce.

“Yeah, it occurred to me that between dealing with the Pentagon, the United Nations, Stark Industries, the Avengers, and New Asgard, I was spreading myself way too thin,” Tony said with a shrug. “So! Meet the new Avengers liaison.”

“We’ve met before,” Bruce said, smiling and letting his skin turn a little green.

“Oh, have you?” Tony said. “Well, I’m sure you’ll get along great. From now on, if you have any dealings with the Avengers, you go straight to Bruce here. He’ll review all the new, signed contracts with you. You know, as a courtesy.”

“Stark…” Ross actually looked like he was going to explode in rage. Tony was tempted to stick around and watch it happen, but he wasn’t lying when he’d said he’d been spreading himself too thin. He had way too much to do, and Ross had just become redundant. 

“You’re not afraid of the Hulk, are you?” Rhodey asked on his way out the door. “That guy is a like a kitten in a basket.”

Tony joined him, walking out of the room like he had the biggest dick the world had ever seen. “Don’t worry, Ross. Bruce is going to take good care of you. Bye now!”

Tony and Rhodey kept it together while walking out the door, but the second the door closed they erupted like freshmen.

“Oh my God, I think he’s going to have a heart attack!” Rhodey said, putting an arm around Tony.

“Heart attack? It looked like the set-up for that scene from Scanners!” 

“God, I’d pay money to see that,” Rhodey said.

They approached the elevator that would take them down to the workshop, and Tony let himself collapse a little against the wall. “That’s your next birthday present, honey bear. Promise.”

“You’re too good to me, Tony.”

Tony’s phone pinged.

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**I take it everything went well?**

Tony’s smile went from triumphant to goofy in a heartbeat. He leaned against Rhodey as he texted Stephen back.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**It was scoring the winning touchdown, creating a new element, and defeating Thanos all rolled up into one juicy hit. Ask Friday to play it for you because it was amazing.**

“Who has you smiling like that? Stephen?” Rhodey asked.

“Huh? Yeah, the whole magic married thing. He knew we just spanked Ross with his own hairbrush, so he texted.”

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Touchdown?**

“That was an image I did not need,” Rhodey said. “Please, Tony, don’t make this weird. All I want to do is enjoy this moment.”

“Well, what metaphor should I use? He stepped on his own landmine.”

“Better.”

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**A touchdown is how you score points in a football game. I thought you were from Nebraska?**

“Fri, send Stephen a picture of a football.”

“Got it, boss.”

It was quiet in the elevator for a moment before Tony noticed. Looking up, he caught Rhodey giving him a satisfied look. 

“What?”

“Nothing,” Rhodey said, smiling. “I’m just glad you and Stephen are getting along. It’s cute.” He crossed his arms and asked, "I know we’re keeping the magic stuff and how you two defeated Thanos out of the press, but what about the others? What about when Steve comes back?”

Tony’s smile faltered. “Yeah, definitely no. Don’t ask me why, but the whole magic bond thing is not something I want them to know. At least not yet.” The doors opened to the labs, and Tony shook off the ominous feelings he got whenever he thought of the Rogues knowing about him and Stephen. 

“Everything that happened was such a shit show. I just want to protect Stephen from it for as long as I can.” 

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**I know what a touchdown is, douchebag. I was just surprised you did.**

Like a curtain being opened to let in sunlight, Stephen’s response put a giddy smile back on Tony’s face.

He continued walking, but quickly noticed Rhodey had stopped. “What?”

Smiling as he caught up, Rhodey put an arm around Tony as they walked in. “Nothing. I’m just happy you’re happy. Marriage looks good on you.”

“Oh.” He considered his odd relationship with Stephen for a moment before agreeing with Rhodey. “Yeah, I am happy. It’s…weird, but it’s working out. A lot better than I thought it would. We’re friends.”

And maybe Tony was having a hard time not flirting with his friend, but Rhodey hardly needed to know that. He definitely didn’t text Rhodey or Peter with what he recognized was an ear-to-ear grin, like the one he had right now. 

And as much as he knew that leading Stephen on was out of the question, Tony couldn’t help himself. He was so completely charmed. The bond just added to it. Stephen’s bone-deep sadness decreased by the day, and while Tony knew it could be Stephen getting used to heartache, he had a feeling it wasn’t. 

He felt the little butterfly flutter happily every time he smiled at Stephen, every time he texted. Tony felt like he was sixteen again, only instead of passing notes and actually talking on the phone, Stephen and Tony were texting and sending happy vibes through their bond.

It was so weird, but Tony was happy.

The only cloud that lingered over his happiness, was knowing that even though he was attracted to Stephen, even if he might be getting to like him even, Tony knew he didn’t love him. At least not yet. And that stopped him from making a move. If he came on to Stephen, it was going to be for keeps. He couldn’t do it just to see if maybe sometime in the future he could _maybe_ possibly love him.

That would be a horrible thing to do.

No, Tony needed to know for sure. And right now he was in the ‘maybe I like this guy’ stage. Nowhere near where he needed to be.

He sighed. Maybe they’d get there, but how long would it take? And how much would he be hurting Stephen along the way?

“Good friends,” Tony said again, realizing he’d been quiet for too long. “Ugh. Okay, now that the annoying walrus is gone, time for the real work to begin.”

Work right now mostly consisted of trying to figure out what he was going to do now that the Space Stone was back on Earth. He’d literally just sent it away and then Loki brought it back and was refusing to give it up.

Loki was just as insistent on keeping the Space Stone as Stephen was about the Time Stone.

“You know, as much as I really don’t want them here, I’m glad Rogers’ crew are getting a good deal out of the Accords. I never should have trusted Ross like I did,” Tony said.

“You did the absolute best that you could, Tony.” Rhodey looked down. “Even with everything that happened, I’m still with you. We do need accountability.”

“Yeah,” Tony said. “But on our terms.”

“On our terms.” Rhodey nodded, then walked over to pet the bots. “Best of both worlds. Did Stephen sign yet?”  
Tony shook his head. “No one’s officially signed yet. Our lawyers are going over every contract with a fine-toothed comb, then they’ll be sent back to the UN, then back to us to sign.” Tony groaned and threw his head back. 

“I’m so tired, Rhodey. I just want to relax. I want a vacation. I want anything but to be dealing with this anymore.”

“Then go,” Rhodey said, walking back towards him.

Tony shook his head. “I need to build a containment box for the Space Stone. We can’t pick up the energy signatures on it because Loki has it in a pocket dimension. Whatever that is. But I’m sure there are other worlds that can see through that. So…hidey box. Tony must make one.”

“No, Tony needs to relax. You’ve been going nonstop for weeks now.” Rhodey sat down on the sofa and watched Tony get to work on a containment box. “How’s Stephen doing?”

“He’s been busy too. Maybe we both need a break,” Tony said, feeling the fatigue hit him as soon as he admitted that.

“Why don’t you take him out?” Rhodey asked, looking at his watch. “It’s five. That’s plenty of time to have a nice night out. Go pick him up and show him a good time. You both deserve it.”

The idea of spending the evening with Stephen gave Tony a pleasant feeling in his chest. “I have been working non-stop,” Tony said.

“Yeah, and he’s been putting up with you nonstop, so give the man a prize.”

“Hey, I am the prize, Rhodey bear.”

“Uh huh,” Rhodey said, but Tony was already ignoring him for Stephen.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**You busy?**

“One thing I did want to ask, Tony,” Rhodey said, hesitantly. “Ross brought up Loki. I hate to admit it, but he does have a point. What are we going to do if he betrays us all?”

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Finishing up daily lessons at Kamar-Taj. I’ll be home in about an hour, then free for the night.**

Tony couldn’t help smiling at Stephen’s response, even though he knew Rhodey’s question was valid. “Thor seems to believe he’s reformed for good this time. Plus, we have a lot more heavy hitters since the last time we dealt with Loki. Stephen alone gave him a good fight the other day.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, Rhodey, it was seriously the hottest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” Tony immediately had a flashback to Stephen sweaty and bloodied and wielding magic swords and had to get ahold of himself. “Imagine Dumblerdore versus Voldemort but like…sexy.”

Giving Tony a doubtful look, Rhodey said, “And you’re just friends?”

“Yup,” Tony said, a little sad. Just friends because anything less than Tony loving Stephen with an epic, all-encompassing love would break Stephen’s heart. Just being friends made Stephen a little less sad and that wasn’t a bad thing. “Just friends, Rhodey.”

“Okay,” Rhodey said after a moment. “So Loki’s plan is to get community service, sign on with the Avengers, then help Thor rule New Asgard?”

“Yeah. Apparently he has a lot of ideas on how to expand their arts programs.” Tony shrugged. Thor had been kinda vague on exactly what arts, but he’d made it clear Loki had achievable goals that he was willing to let the Hague know about.

“Well, I guess if shit hits the fan we have Bruce. And Stephen. And maybe even Wanda.”

Tony’s face went dark at that. “Yeah, maybe Wanda. We’ll see.” He cast aside all thoughts of the rogue Avengers returning in favor of texting Stephen back.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**Feel like taking a walk?**

“You taking my advice?” Rhodey asked.

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**Sure, but are we afraid of being noticed? You’re one of the most famous men in New York, and people might notice me from videos of our fight.**

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**Plus, you do have a very particular face.**

**From: Pinball Wizard**

**-_-**

Tony burst out laughing.

Rhodey just groaned. “Okay, seriously. Just go to him, Tony. Go now before I kick your ass.”

“What, in this?” he gestured to his stiff three-piece suit. 

“Yes. You look good. You know you look good. This was your battle suit, don’t take it off now.” Rhodey gave him a shoulder shove. “Go! I’ll make sure Bruce gets Ross out of the tower. Go show Stephen a good time.”

Bouncing on the tips of his toes, Tony patted his pockets for the keys to the new Audi. “You complete me!” he shouted, running to the elevator.

“You’re damn right, I do!” Rhodey shouted after him.

Tony texted Stephen that he’d be driving in to New York, settled into his car, and took off. On the drive there, he thought about how Stephen should be revealed to the world. Everyone had seen the wizards who had fought with Tony, but no major media outlet or conspiracy theorist had been able to figure out it was Stephen.

Stephen had agreed to join the Avengers. His contract was in its final stages. All it needed was to be finished up, reviewed by the UN, then signed by Stephen.

Why not allow for a less formal announcement? Coney Island wasn’t exactly an old stomping ground for Tony, but it was fun. There’d be games to play and people who would notice them. Maybe a small splash ahead of a formal announcement was what was needed.

He’d let Stephen decide.

He pulled up to the Sanctum and, before he could even knock, the door swung open.

“Uh, hello?” he said, walking in slowly. The place looked great. The carpenters had done a fantastic job cleaning it up. He took a slow walk around the room before Wong found him.

“Stark,” he said.

“Hey, buddy. Hope you don’t mind, but your door opened right for me.”

Wong nodded. “The Sanctum recognizes you as its master’s bondmate. The building itself will try and aid you when it can.”

“That’s…kinda neat, actually,” Tony said, giving the place a second look. It was kinda like having Friday around. “Being married to a wizard has its quirks I guess.”

“Sorcerer,” Wong said, and there was a tone of finality to his voice. “Stephen is a sorcerer. Not a wizard.”

Tony held back a frown. “I don’t think he’s ever cared that I call him that.”

Wong’s body language went from friendly to serious in an instant. He shifted his feet and straightened his shoulders. “He loves you and feels like he is a burden to you,” Wong said, and the tone of finality turned hostile. “Stephen would let you call him a carrot if you wanted it.”

It was like being hit in the head with a two by four. Tony’s ears heated and his heart fell between his knees. That couldn’t possibly be true. Not now. Not after how he’d shown Stephen how much he cared for him. 

And he had shown Stephen…hadn’t he?

Before he had a chance to retort, a spinning golden circle formed towards the doorway of the Sanctum and Stephen stepped out. He walked over to the two of them. He looked between them calmly, like Wong hadn’t just detonated a bomb, and asked, “Everything alright?”

He and Wong were silent for a moment before Tony finally responded. “Yeah! Yes, everything’s fine. Hey, Doc, how do you feel about Coney Island? Maybe play some games, eat some disgusting fried food? Maybe even let your picture get taken a little?”

Stephen squinted at Tony, and Tony could feel his hesitation. “Are we sure that’s the best way to go about it?”

“No,” Tony said, honestly. He’d give Stephen his opinion, but ultimately let him make the decision. “But I figure it might be nice to let the public see you looking a little more human, since all they’ve seen of you is being a badass wiz—sorcerer. Might be good to build up some good public relations before the big announcement.”

Stephen caught Tony’s slip of the tongue but didn’t say anything. He seemed to think it over for a minute before nodding. “That sounds like a good plan.” He looked between Wong and Tony again before walking towards the stairs. “I’ll just go change.”

Tony waited until he heard a door close before he said, “I think you’ve got the wrong idea.”

“Good,” Wong said, his voice cutting like a knife. “Because if you play with Stephen’s heart then you will have to deal with me. And you do not want to deal with me, Stark.”

“Shovel talk, got it,” Tony said. “I gotta say I half-expected this from Big Red, but seeing as how it can’t talk—“

“I’m serious,” Wong said softly, his voice low and dark. “Stephen is in love with you. I am glad to see you are treating him well, but do not string him along. Do not take advantage of him. And unless you are absolutely sure you are of it, do not pursue him. Be his friend, be his ally, grow your bond as much as you like, but do not break his heart.”

The door upstairs closed again. Tony stood there frozen, undecided on whether he wanted to defend himself because he would never treat Stephen like that or beg for forgiveness because he’d spent the past week talking himself out of the very thing Wong was suggesting.

Stephen slowly walked down the stairs. Tony and Wong continued their stare-down, and Tony knew Stephen could feel everything he was feeling. No point in trying to hide it.

“Do you two need me to bust out the measuring tape?” he asked lazily.

“Hmm?” Tony said, not breaking his stare.

“For the dick measuring contest you’re obviously having.”

“No need to bust it out, Doc, everyone knows—oh, fuck,” Tony blurted out, finally looking over at Stephen. He was wearing a grey t-shirt, a black jacket, blue jeans, and a red scarf. It was a completely ordinary outfit, the whole ensemble probably didn’t cost more than a hundred bucks, and yet he looked absolutely amazing in it. This was the first time Tony had ever seen him wearing normal, form-fitting clothes. He’d seen Stephen with half his tunic torn off the other day, but somehow seeing him in clothing that actually _fit_ him was ten times hotter. The blush that was running from Stephen’s ears to his neck at Tony’s obvious appreciation just made him cuter.

Someone cuffed him on the ear. 

“Hey!” he shouted at Wong.

“Snap out of it! Go,” Wong said, “have fun.” He pointed a finger at Tony. “Remember what I said.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Tony said, gently grabbing Stephen by the elbow. “I’ll have him back by eleven, _Dad_.”

Tony opened the front door of the Sanctum for Stephen, then the passenger side car door, before he realized Stephen was still on the sidewalk.

“You okay, Doc?”

Stephen shifted on his feet for a moment. “Yeah, fine,” Stephen cleared his throat and looked down. Tony felt his apprehension and fear, and knew he wasn’t fine. He slowly walked around to the passenger side of the car, his hands shaking and his fear rising. 

It all confused the hell out of Tony before he realized.

Car accident. What with being able to use portals it had probably been a while since Stephen had even been inside a car. It made complete sense that he’d be afraid of getting in one now.

And he’d been a few steps away from doing exactly that, then enduring a car ride to Coney Island. For Tony.

“Oh, hell. Wong was right,” he whispered.

“What?” Stephen asked.

Tony closed the car door before Stephen could get in. “You know what? “We’re burning daylight. You mind making a portal? We’ll get there much faster.”

The relief coming from Stephen hit Tony like a wave. Tony fought the urge to kick his own ass. How much had he missed? And did Stephen really still feel like a burden?

“You’re sure?” Stephen asked.

“Sure! Absolutely.” He’d gone through a portal with Stephen the other day and everything turned out just fine. And this was Stephen. He trusted Stephen with his life.

Stephen created the portal right there in the middle of the sidewalk and took Tony’s hand. They walked through together, just like Stephen had said. 

As they stepped through and to Coney Island, Tony exhaled and knew this was something he could do for Stephen. Every time would get a little bit easier, he told himself.

“I’m surprised Red isn’t here,” Tony said. “I thought you two were attached at the neck.”

“We are,” Stephen said, and the red scarf around his neck waved its tassels.

“Oh! Neat trick, Red,” Tony said, patting the scarf.

“The Cloak of Levitation is an ancient relic. We don’t know much about its history, but we know it can shift itself like it’s doing now. It’s also fireproof.”

“Good to know,” Tony said. They’d entered Coney Island right behind a dingy bathroom, which was probably intentional on Stephen’s part. No one would be expecting to see Tony Stark on Coney Island anyway.

“When was the last time you were here, Doc?”

“I’ve never been here,” Stephen said.

“No way,” Tony laughed. “Not even once? Not even when you first went to Columbia?”

“Never. I’d heard about it, but I was busy studying. After I became a doctor, I used to think things like this were beneath me.” Stephen shoved his hands in his pockets, and he and Tony started their walk on the boulevard. “I put myself in a very high ivory tower. I had a very long way to fall, and when I did…”

“Yeah,” Tony said. They walked in silence for a few minutes. “Are you happy though?”

“What?” Stephen asked, as though no one had ever thought to ask after him. As though Tony caring about him was so completely unexpected.

Tony grimaced. “Are you happy with where you are in your life now? How things ended up? The whole…sorcery thing.” He paused. “And being married to me.”

“Bonded,” Stephen corrected. The floor boards under their feet groaned a bit under their weight, and a gentle breeze made Stephen’s hair dance. Tony couldn’t help but stare. “And yes. I do miss my old life. I worked so hard for it, so of course I still miss it. But I wouldn’t trade it.”

They walked for another few minutes, passing a few stands selling knick-knacks and hot dogs, before Stephen said, “And being bonded to you isn’t so bad.” He smiled at Tony with the setting sun framing his face, the wind blowing his bangs, and the most beautiful smile gracing his face.

He was the most beautiful man Tony had ever seen, and all he wanted to do was wrap his hands around Stephen’s face and draw him down for a kiss.

He could do it, Tony knew. Even now, Tony could feel that all-encompassing love Stephen felt for him beat steadily behind his heart. He could take Stephen in his arms and take whatever he wanted.

But that’s what it would be: taking. Taking Stephen’s love for Tony when all Tony had for Stephen was friendship, lust, and a crush. Tony had vowed to never take advantage of that love.

He shook himself out of it. “Well, I’d hope not,” Tony finally said. “Since it’s for keeps and all.”

“Excuse me, Mr. Stark,” a young voice called out to him, and Tony saw a group of young teenagers making a small crowd in the distance. “Sorry to bother you, sir, but can me and my friends get a picture?”

“Sure!” Tony said, grabbing Stephen by the hand. “You want a picture of Doctor Strange, too? He’s going to be the newest Avenger.”

A young girl towards the back of the small crowd said, “That’s the wizard that was fighting with Iron Man!”

“The preferred term is Master of the Mystic Arts, but yes!” Tony said, gesturing to Stephen. “This is him, Doctor Strange!”

The kids all crowded around Tony and Stephen and took turns taking selfies with them. 

“Hashtag Doctor Strange, Hashtag New Avenger, Hashtag Sorcerer,” Tony said to the kids who were busy uploading all their photos.

“Well, I guess that’s that,” Stephen said as the kids walked away.

“It’ll work out perfectly,” Tony said. “No one better to spread news than teenagers. Plus I heard one of them tell the other to use ‘master of the mystic arts’ instead of ‘wizard.’” He put his hands back in his pockets and gently led Stephen back to the boardwalk. “Those were nice kids.”

“Yeah,” Stephen looked at him oddly. “That’s the second time you’ve done that today.”

“What?” Tony asked.

“Used ‘sorcerer’ instead of ‘wizard.’ Who are you, and what have you done to Tony Stark?”

“Hey, I can grow! In fact, a few hours ago I was really tempted to let Thor use Ross as a practice dummy, but did I? No.”

“What did Wong tell you?” Stephen asked.

Tony stopped abruptly and a few people knocked into him from behind. He shook himself and continued walking, but Stephen’s eyes were on him. 

“Nothing. Basic shovel talk, that kind of thing. I’m sure Pepper gave you one too.”

“No, Pepper hugged me and gave me coffee. Then we sat around and bitched about you until she had to go.”

Tony opened his mouth, but no words came out. “Ouch. Good to know.”

“Tony—“

“I see how it is. Please tell me Rhodey stopped by in the War Machine armor at least? Threaten to shoot up the Cloak if you so much as harm a hair on my head?”

The Cloak shook its tassels ‘no.’

“Tony, you don’t have to change who you are around me,” Stephen said. “I know who you are,” he said, grabbing Tony’s arm and pulling him out of the flow of foot traffic. “Really. Over fourteen million lifetimes, I know you. I don’t want to change you. It really doesn’t bother me that you call me sorcerer or Doc or anything else.”

In the distance, Tony heard the shutter of a high-end camera. He could just imagine the picture they made: Stephen in Tony’s space, the two of them leaned into each other, looking deeply into each other’s eyes. 

To hell with it, Tony thought. 

“What if I’m just trying to do right to you? Be nice?” he asked.

Stephen frowned. “Why?”

Tony lifted an eyebrow.

“I mean—okay, that sounded much darker than I meant it,” Stephen said, shaking hands rubbing his temples.

He really didn’t know, Tony thought. Well that ended now. “Because you’re important to me, Doc. Because you’re a part of me. It makes me happy that you’re happy.” He held his hand to his chest. “Literally.” He smiled. “I’m pretty sure it’s a good thing that I want my husband to be happy with me.”

“Bondmate,” Stephen breathed. The little butterfly behind Tony’s heart fluttered softly. Happily.

“Also, I hope you like seeing pictures of yourself, because a photographer just took a couple.”

“What?” Stephen said, looking around.

“Yeah, by the time I heard it, it was too late.”

Stephen frowned. “I thought being seen by the media was the idea.”

“Sure, but I was thinking more like people on Twitter. Not Buzzfeed. But, I’m used to it. I’m just worried about you.”

“I already agreed to join the Avengers, Tony,” Stephen said. They started their slow walk again. “I know what that entails. It’ll be fine.”

“Hey, so, since we’re here,” Tony led Stephen over to the Skee-Ball. “Want to play a game?” He paused and considered Stephen’s hands. “This okay?”

“Probably not,” Stephen said, then squinted at the game. “Or it might be okay today, but the Cloak will be stirring my tea for me tomorrow.”

The Cloak shifted a bit around Stephen’s neck, like it wanted to make a gesture but refrained.

Tony was just about to say they should just move on when a little voice suddenly shouted, “Iron Man!” somewhere near Tony’s knees.

The little girl was tugging on Tony’s pant leg and gesturing to the stuffed Iron Man that was behind the Skee-Ball counter.

“Oh, that’s just perfect,” Tony said, smiling.

“Keesha!” a woman shouted, running through the crowd. “I am so sorry—“ She stopped when she realized who she was speaking to. “Oh, my God,” she muttered.

“Hey, it’s fine. Cute kid. She’s got great taste in toys. Pity these things are rigged.” Tony dramatically tapped his finger against his lips as a small crowd started to gather around them. “My friend here, Doctor Strange, is a sorcerer. And the newest Avenger! I bet together, we can win you that Iron Man.”

“Yay, Iron Man!” Keesha shouted again.

“Oh, can we?” Stephen asked, smirking.

“Come on, Doc, you know these things are rigged. Can you maybe do a little…” Tony made a gesture with his hands.

Stephen glared at him for a moment before Keesha started tugging on his pants leg too. The surrounding crowd was taking pictures and talking excitedly. 

Tony held his breath and felt like something amazing was about to happen. Here, on Coney Island of all places, Doctor Strange and Iron Man were about to demonstrate their allegiance to each other to the world.

“We’ll play,” Tony said to the guy behind the counter, laying down a hundred. The guy tried to give Tony his money back, but Tony just slid it over again. He took his balls then turned back to Stephen.

“Come on,” Tony whispered to him. “Team Strange all the way.” He lifted a ball and waited for Stephen.

He didn’t have to wait long. “This is a terrible misuse of magic,” he said, his hands sparking with gold. The small crowd around them gasped in awe and wonder, and Tony could see people taking pictures on their phones from the corner of his eye.

“Wong’s going to be pissed at me,” Stephen said.

Winding up for the pitch, Tony waited until his ball glowed gold and said, “He can be angry at me instead. It’s a good look on him,” then tossed the ball.

It hit 100.

The crowd went wild. People were excited and talking animatedly, like it was the play-off game, and their team was about to win.

The guy running the game gave Tony another ball. Tony was, if nothing else, a showman.

“Do you think we can make it?” he asked the crowd.

The crowd cheered and Stephen rolled his eyes and smiled.

“Do you think me and Doctor Strange, the newest Avenger, can make this shot?”

“You saved the world!” someone shouted from the back.

“That’s fair,” Tony said. “But this is Skee-Ball.” Everyone laughed. “I don’t think the Geneva Convention applies. All bets are off. Doctor, if you would…”

Stephen smiled as the crowd cheered him on. Stephen made the ball glow again and Tony tossed it into the 100 again.

“Just one more, Doc,” Tony said, holding up the last ball. “Think we can do it?”

The crowd cheered, “Yeah!” as one. 

“You’re really in your element here, aren’t you, Mr. Stark?” Stephen asked. The look he was giving Tony was soft. The feeling that was coming from Stephen was warm and happy.

“You and me against indescribable odds? Sounds like my idea of a good time, Doc.” 

Tony threw the golden ball into the 100 hole.

The crowd went absolutely wild. The guy running the game gave them a four-foot-tall Iron Man plush that Tony immediately held up high before giving to Keesha.

“Say thank you to Mr. Stark,” Keesha’s mom told her.

“Thank you!” she cried, then threw her arms around Tony.

Several people in the crowd went, ‘aww.’

“Thank you, Doctor Strange!” she cried, unexpectedly throwing herself into Stephen’s arms.

Stephen caught her and laughed. “You’re welcome,” he said, then gave the little girl back to her mother.

“We make a good team,” Tony said.

“Yeah,” Stephen said. “But we already knew that.”

Tony leaned into Stephen, and looked into his eyes. All he could feel was Stephen’s love for him, his happiness. Tony contemplated how happy he could be when suddenly there was screaming coming from the beach.

Shouts of “Mr. Stark!” and “Iron Man” and even a few “Doctor Strange” filled the air. Tony felt both his and Stephen’s alarm before Tony tapped his nanoparticles to suit up, and Stephen’s traditional tunic and the Cloak seemed to transform out of thin air.

“Neat trick, Red,” Tony said, the two of them taking off towards the shouts.

“Get it off!” a man was screaming. There were a few other shouts of disgust and alarm before Tony was able to see about a dozen people near the water with what looked like giant purple slugs attached to them.

“Stay still,” Tony ordered to the shouting man, and fired up his repulsors when Stephen put a hand on his arm.

“Wait,” he said, and floated down to the people who had literal giant slugs attached to them. “These are een’gawore slugs,” he said, gently laying his hands on the largest slug. “And they’re babies. They aren’t from this universe, so how did they get here?”

“Get. It. Off!” the man shouted at Stephen, who glared but removed the slug. It immediately attached itself to Stephen.

“They’re starving,” Stephen said, not seeming to mind at all that a huge slug was attached to him.

Tony knew he had a look of disgust on his face, but he couldn’t help it. This was very much out of his wheelhouse. “Is it…sucking your blood?”

“No, it eats magic,” Stephen said, removing the slug and moving on to another man with a slug attached to him. “I have no idea how they came to be here or why they’re so desperate they’re trying to feed off non-magic humans.” He let the slug feed off him for a moment, then put it on the ground with the other.

“Should I…” Tony gestured at the other people who had slugs and Stephen nodded, showing him how to safely remove the creatures.

They put them all in a little slug pile and then Stephen took out his sling ring. He did a complicated movement and then opened a portal to a place with a purple sky, sending all the slugs back to their little slug home.

“Thank you, Doctor Strange,” someone in the crowd said, and Tony had been so focused on Stephen and the slugs that he hadn’t noticed how large a crowd they’d gathered.

There would definitely be no problem getting Stephen’s name and face out to the public. On the contrary, Tony was probably going to have to call Pepper and his PR team to make sure this didn’t get out of hand.

“You’re welcome,” Stephen said. Even though he was smiling, Tony could feel his apprehension, uncertainty, and a little bit of fear.

“Newest Avengers are on slug duty,” Tony said to the crowd, who laughed. “You know how it is, folks. Everyone enjoy your night.”

He let the crowd break up before he recalled the suit, but Stephen remained in his sorcerer gear. He was staring at the space where the slugs had been.

“Doc?”

“Sorry,” Stephen said, blinking. “Sorry, Tony. I’m fine, but I really have no idea why that happened. Een’gawor slugs are completely harmless, if parasitic, but this isn’t their home dimension. They have inherent magic, so I can imagine _how_ they got here, but what I don’t understand is why. They aren’t migratory, and—to my knowledge—they’ve never done this before. So what happened?”

Tony shifted on his feet, understanding but still slightly miffed that slugs of all things were ruining their date.

Even though it wasn’t a date. 

_Get it together, Stark._

“Do you want my help on this? I have no idea how to even begin researching giant space slugs, but I’m willing to try,” Tony said, taking Stephen’s elbow again and walking the beach.

Stephen seemed like he was miles away, lost in his thoughts. “Hmm?” he said, letting Tony lead him, even if he wasn’t completely listening.

“You know, help? Team Strange, all the way,” Tony said, giving Stephen’s elbow a gentle squeeze.

“Oh,” Stephen said, finally looking at Tony. “Thank you, Tony, but this is something I’ll have to report to the elder sorcerers. I’ll tell Wong first, maybe he might know of some instance this has happened in the past. Or he might know where to find it.” Stephen looked down at his boots, looking regretful. “I think I’ll have to cut the evening short.”

Tony had figured, but he was still disappointed.

“Sorry,” Stephen said.

“No, duty calls,” Tony said, putting his hands up. “I, of all people, understand that. Really. Plus, I did promise Wong I wouldn’t have you out too late.”

Scoffing, Stephen said, “Wong means well, but he needs to mind his own business. I don’t tell him how to sort his books.”

“Is there a sorcerer Dewey Decimal System?” Tony jokingly asked.

“Oh, don’t get Wong started on the Dewey Decimal System,” Stephen said seriously.

Tony laughed as Stephen opened the portal to the doorway of the Sanctum back in New York. Once again, Stephen offered his hand as they stepped through. Like Tony had thought, it was a little easier this time.

That didn’t stop him from holding Stephen’s hand. Or holding on just a little bit longer than necessary.

Stephen closed the portal, and they were both standing at the front door. Suddenly, this very much felt like a date.

Tony was still holding Stephen’s hand. “I had a good time tonight,” Tony said. He couldn’t help but run his thumb over Stephen’s hand, enjoying the blush that crept up Stephen’s neck to his cheeks.

“Me too,” Stephen said, and Tony could feel his excitement, his anticipation.

“We should do this again soon,” Tony said, reaching out to gently take Stephen’s other hand. 

All he had to do was pull Stephen just a little bit closer. That was all it would take.

“Tony…” Stephen whispered, but it wasn’t a plea, and it wasn’t permission. It was a question. 

Tony didn’t know the answer.

He pulled away just in time for Wong to open the front door, take one look at their joint hands, and scowl. Wordlessly, he opened the door wider, and Tony took that as his cue. He let his thumb swipe over Stephen’s hands one more time before releasing them.

He smiled and took a few steps backwards towards his car.

“Have a good night, Doc. Let me know about the slugs,” he said, watching Stephen enter the Sanctum.

“Slugs?” he heard Wong ask before the door closed.

With a sigh, Tony got behind the wheel of his car. 

What had he been thinking? He told himself he wasn’t going to take advantage of Stephen, that he wasn’t going to make a move unless he was sure about it, then he does this.

_Confusion_

_Sadness_

_Uncertainty_

“Great job, Stark,” he muttered to himself. He took out his phone and saw a missed call from Pepper and a couple of texts from Rhodey. He ignored them for the link sent from Peter.

**Tony Stark and New Avenger take on Killer Slugs On Coney Island**

Well, that wasn’t entirely accurate, but it wasn’t the worst headline. 

He checked a few social media sites and saw pictures of himself and Stephen handling the slugs, testimonies from people they had ‘saved’ from the vicious attack, speculation on Stephen being the newest Avenger. Even pictures of him and Stephen giving Keesha the plush.

Then Tony checked twitter and found the photo the pro had taken.

It was a really great picture, Tony thought. If circumstances were different, Tony would have called the photographer and asked for a copy of it.

The photo was of the two of them, Stephen leaning into Tony. They were obviously looking into each other’s eyes and smiling. Honestly, the photo didn’t even leave room for speculation that they meant something to each other.

The comments were mostly positive. Reminders that Tony had come out as bisexual in his twenties, support for the two of them, people glad that there were new Avengers to help defend the Earth.

Tony looked at the picture and sighed. They looked perfect together. He couldn’t have asked for a better picture.

Except they weren’t together. And this just complicated everything.

His thoughts were interrupted by Pepper calling.

“Hey, Pep,” he said, putting down his phone and letting Pepper’s voice come through the speakers in the car.

“You okay, Tony?”

“Yeah, super,” he said, pulling into traffic.

“How do you feel?” she asked.

Tony considered the question. Streetlights and pedestrians flashed by him, and it was all he could do to try to answer. 

“I don’t know,” he said, and drove into the cool, dark night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never been to Coney Island, so I looked up some pictures and remembered some stills from movies and took a lucky shot. Apologies if I got it totally wrong. The plot is slowly, slowly coming along, but I'm trying to balance that with their slowly growing relationship. I hope you all are enjoying it as much as I'm enjoying writing it.
> 
> Much love to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for an amazing beta. I've been updating a chapter a week, but they've been betaing my sludge. Thank you, friends. 
> 
> If you're on tumblr, come find me. [my tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com)


	11. Discussion Over a Drink

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic has gained a few new readers over the past week. Welcome! I'm so glad this fic is being so well-received. Thank you all so much for letting me know how you're enjoying the story. Every comment makes me so happy and helps make it all worth it.

“I swear to Odin, I’m going to vomit all over your carpet if I’m forced to see that picture one more time, Stark,” Loki said, grimacing at the TV screen Thor was watching.

From the dining area, Tony looked up from what he was working on. He looked over the rim of his coffee cup while the late-night talk show Thor was watching displayed the picture of him and Stephen. The jokes were all about how Tony was finally taking a vacation or how short Tony was or how Stephen looked like he’d shopped at Goodwill next to Tony’s three piece. 

Which was kinda mean, but expected for a comedy show. Low hanging fruit and all.

Nothing homophobic, nothing nasty. Maybe the world was growing.

Which was great for the world, but maybe it should consider passing some of that growing over to Tony. It had been a week since he’d seen Stephen. A week since those pictures surfaced, and Tony was no closer to figuring out how he felt about Stephen. Or what exactly he should do about it.

To make matters worse, he missed him more and more every day. Something was going on with Stephen’s magic order, and he’d texted to say he’d be busy. Which was fine, of course. How many times had Tony given Pepper the exact same speech? 

Kinda sucked to be on the receiving end, he found.

The late-night host ended the bit with a joke about ‘awesome facial hair bros,’ and Tony couldn’t help but smile.

Loki was making hacking sounds next to Thor on the sofa.

“So much for getting rid of the bad blood,” Tony muttered darkly.

Thor kicked Loki and said, “You are fifteen hundred years old, not eight. And Stark is our host. Remember your station, brother.”

“My station?” Loki sputtered in disbelief. “Of what, a destroyed realm? I’m as much a refugee as my people, only worse so because I’m in hiding. And if that wasn’t bad enough, I have to go before _mortals_ and defend myself, then perform five hundred years of _community service_!”

“I mean, no one’s saying you have to stay here,” Tony said. He felt for Thor, but he was kinda done with his houseguest. Loki had been bitchy and angry for the last two weeks he’d been here. Tony made an effort to avoid him, but Loki usually went where Thor went and Thor liked to talk to Tony.

“You literally have the Space Stone in your pocket,” Tony continued. “What’s to stop you from just going somewhere else and just…starting over?”

The look of disdain melted off Loki’s face and he snuck a glance at Thor. “I don’t owe you an explanation, Stark.”

“No, but I would hear your answer,” Thor said, turning off the television and giving Loki his full attention.

Loki stared at the floor for a moment while they waited. “I’ve already told you. The time for running is over. I am tired of running from who I am. I am Loki, brother of Thor and prince of Asgard. My place is here, with you and with my people. I will not leave, brother.”

“Aww,” said a voice from an open doorway. “That was really sweet, Loki,” Bruce said, coming fully into the room. “I’m really proud of you. Think of how far you’ve come since the last time you were here.”

“Shut up, Bruce!” Loki shouted, standing from the sofa and storming off like a teenager. “No one cares what you think!”

Well that was one way to get rid of an annoying god, Tony thought. And to think Loki and Bruce had been on the same ship together for a while. He could only imagine the hoops Thor would have had to jump through just to keep the ship going.

“I didn’t mean to set him off,” Bruce said, coming into the room. “Really.”

Thor waved a hand through the air to dismiss Bruce’s concerns. “Loki’s mood is not your doing. He’s upset because he has to stay in the Compound, when he’s used to being able to leave any time he’d like. As much as he’s always enjoyed staying in with a book, it’s not natural for him to stay inside for so long.”

“Well…” As much as Tony really didn’t want to cater to Loki, he did understand how house arrest sucked. Plus, even prisoners got to get some sun every once in a while. “I mean, it’s not a good idea for him to go far away from the Compound, but he can take a walk outside. Satellite scramblers work about twenty feet away from the Compound walls.”

Thor put his face in his hands. “He took a walk outside yesterday. He came back in quickly saying something about Strange’s magical excrement and how one of them touched him. Then he showered for an hour.”

Tony spit out a little of his coffee. “Hey!” Tony said, putting down his mug with a laugh. “Stephen’s magical excrement is ridiculously cute and welcome to my gardens any day.”

Bruce lifted an eyebrow but said nothing.

Thor was apparently made of sterner stuff. “He’s also embarrassed he has to go before your courts and explain himself.”

“Was he never accountable to anyone before?” Bruce asked. “I mean, I know he’s a prince, but Earth royalty at least gets tried in the court of public opinion, if nothing else. If one of them committed war crimes they’d go before the exact court that’s going to try Loki.”

“Yes, of course,” Thor said. “He was accountable to our father and mother, but they were both gods. This is a humbling experience for him. I’m sure it will be good for him in the long run, but it’s difficult now.”

Flashbacks to Afghanistan and his old life flashed before Tony’s eyes. He thought of Stephen before his crash, the talk they’d had about taking a hard fall. For Tony, it was almost as though his life before Afghanistan had been someone else. That everything he went through before that was just to prepare him for his rebirth as Iron Man. He had a feeling Stephen felt the same way.

Maybe a miracle would happen and Loki would be a better person after all this. 

“Tony,” said Stephen.

_Had he portaled in?_

Hearing Stephen’s voice when he wasn’t expecting it was surprising but exciting, and Tony’s heart tried to leap from his chest. His eyes snapped over to the doorway that led to the bedrooms, and his eyes went wide.

Stephen was standing there in a robe, the tie hanging loosely and his chest partially exposed.

“Tony, come to bed,” he said, and he leaned against the door frame, spreading his feet apart so his legs were open.

Tony physically felt the room spin. His heart was beating overtime and his mind was too busy collapsing in on itself, but even then he knew something was very wrong with this picture.

“Brother, that isn’t funny.”

“Quiet, Thor,” Stephen said, touching his own chest. “I want to see how long it takes him.”

“What—“ Tony muttered before red hot rage bubbled inside him. What was wrong finally clicked. 

He’d known it wasn’t Stephen. Despite what his eyes and ears were telling him, a part of him knew there was no way that could be Stephen.

He tapped his nanoparticles, rage on auto pilot. He heard Bruce say something and then there were arms around him, holding him back.

“What’s wrong, dearest?” Loki said, and smiled.

Tony held back from firing at the look on his face. Loki was using Stephen’s stolen face to give Tony a smile he’d never seen before. There was a look of joy—even if he knew it was joy at being an asshole—on Stephen’s face.

Tony had never seen Stephen smile like that.

Thor appeared out of nowhere, it seemed, and grabbed Loki around the middle. “We’re going for a walk outside, brother!” Thor said, grabbing hold of Loki—who still looked like Stephen—and manhandling him out the door.

Tony knew that hadn’t really been Stephen, he’d known it in his heart. But for some reason, he couldn’t stop staring at the doorway once Loki was gone.

“Hey, Tony! He’s gone!” Bruce was waving a hand in front of his face, but Tony had no idea how long he’d been waving it. “You back with me?”

Slowly, Tony began to calm. HIs breathing went back to normal, and he retracted the gauntlet he’d been tempted to use to blast Loki’s face off.

“Yeah, I’m back. Thanks, Bruce.” He put his head in his hands and groaned, “What an asshole!”

“Yeah, that was a pretty terrible thing to do. I know he’s the god of mischief, but that was uncalled for.”

“Ugh,” Tony groaned, trying to drive away the mental images of Stephen beckoning him to bed, wearing almost nothing. The temptation was terrible, and Tony knew he wasn’t going to give in. He couldn’t.

“You okay?” Bruce asked, putting a hand on Tony’s shoulder.

“Yeah,” Tony said, finally sitting up and looking at Bruce. “Fine. I’m fine.” 

“Um,” Bruce said, hesitating, and Tony knew what he was about to ask. 

He groaned again.

“Are things okay between you and Strange?”

Tony put his hands over his face, then glared at Bruce through his fingers.

Putting his hands up, Bruce said, “Right. I’m sorry. Forget I said anything.”

“No, it’s fine,” Tony said, letting himself give into despair for just a minute. “Stephen and I are good. We’re…friends.” He paused to let that sink in for a moment.

Bruce wore a mask of confusion and shifted on his feet. “That’s good. Right?” Bruce asked, obviously confused. “Is ‘friends’ a bad thing? Rhodey told me you guys made peace on Titan. After all the sniping you did at each other at his place, I was glad to hear it. So…it’s nice to be friends?”

Tony had to stop himself from smacking his own face. Of course, Bruce would have no frame of reference for what was actually going on. He’d specifically told Rhodey to keep it close to the chest. No one knew exactly what was going on between him and Stephen except him and Stephen. 

Even Wong only knew Stephen’s side of the story.

“Yeah, Bruce,” he said, conceding a fight not worth fighting. “Friends are always good.” He gestured to the Starkpad Bruce had with him, desperately wishing to change the subject. “You got something for me there?”

“Yeah…” Bruce said softly, his smile sad and regretful. “But you’re upset. It can wait.”

“Well, now I definitely cannot wait since you just said that,” Tony said, and tried to pluck the Starkpad from Bruce’s hand.

“Okay, okay,” Bruce said, taking a few steps back. “I’ll tell you.” He hesitated but finally said, “I got a set date on when Steve and everyone are going to come back.”

Tony’s fingers immediately went for the amulet Stephen had given him that hung around his neck. He let his thumb rub over the stone, allowing himself to feel Stephen’s presence.

“Spill it, Bruce. You look like you’re about to tell me I’m dying.”

“It’s tomorrow, Tony. Steve’s coming back to the Compound tomorrow.”

Cold sweat broke out across his body, and his heart began to race. He could feel himself begin to hyperventilate, but he tried to continue with Bruce. Maybe he could just try to power through it…

“Why so soon?” he gasped out. Bruce was looking at him with fear in his eyes. “Why tomorrow?”

“Everyone’s contracts have been finalized,” Bruce said, looking Tony in the eye. “They want everyone to be signed and official as soon as possible.” Bruce took off his glasses and directed his attention away from Tony, like he was trying to give him space to get ahold of himself. “It makes sense, since we have no idea when a threat could pop up.”

Tony gulped and tried to take a deep breath, but it came out haggard and labored. His heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest, and his vision was getting blurry. There’d be no powering through this one.

“Stephen…” he whispered. He needed Stephen here. He took out his phone to call him, but dropped it on the floor.

“Damn,” Bruce said, physically stopping him from falling to the floor. “It’s okay, Tony. Just breathe. Can you tell me what you need?”

Tony staggered a breath and repeated, “Stephen.”

“You want me to call him for you?” Bruce asked, picking up the phone.

He nodded. His vision was getting dark around the edges, and he sank to the floor. He thought he heard Bruce talking to someone, but he couldn’t feel anything from Stephen. Or at least nothing more than the constant, steady presence that had been with him since Titan.

Where was he? Did he know Tony needed him?

 _You’re not being fair, Stark_ , he thought. Stephen had his own life, his own responsibilities. He couldn’t just drop everything because Tony had a bad panic attack. He pushed the thought away and focused on breathing. He could get through this, just like he had a dozen times before.

Suddenly, he felt something soft and warm cover him from shoulder to toe. It bundled him up in a Tony burrito, and Tony smelled old books and tea.

_Stephen_

“That’s right, Tony,” Bruce said from above him. “Deep breaths. You’re going to be okay. Just keep taking deep breaths.”

Tony obeyed, knowing how this all worked and the best way to get through it. He breathed Stephen in through his nose and exhaled softly. He let the warmth seep into his bones and smiled. Stephen had come after all.

“Doc?” Tony asked and frowned, because he felt like he was here and yet…

“I’m sorry, Stark, but Stephen is currently astral projecting to another dimension.” Tony opened his eyes and found Wong hovering over him near Bruce. “Doctor Banner called and said you needed him, but I was unable to contact him. The Cloak wished to come over and help you in Stephen’s stead.”

That explained the warmth and the smell. Tony looked down and saw the Cloak draped over him, bundling him with its warmth.

“Thanks, Red,” Tony said softly. “I’m okay, guys. Thanks. And sorry for the trouble.”

“It is no trouble to help my friend’s bondmate when he is unable,” Wong said. He turned to the Cloak and asked, “Are you going to stay with Stark?”

The Cloak nodded and curled around Tony tighter. Tony knew exactly why Stephen loved this thing so much. 

“You’re the best, Red.” 

Wong nodded and said, “I will keep Stephen’s phone nearby. Please let me know if you need help, Stark.” Wong gave the Cloak a _look_ and closed the portal.

“I didn’t realize you were sentient until just now,” Bruce said to the Cloak. Tony closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. “I’m sorry if I was ever dismissive of you before.”

Tony felt the Cloak shake its collar, then the sound of one of its edges brushing against Bruce.

“Thanks. Can you move him to the sofa? He’ll probably be more comfortable.”

Feeling himself float through the air was hardly disconcerting, but it was irritating to be talked about like he wasn't there. “Tony is also sentient, you know.”

The Cloak fluttered its collar at Tony’s cheeks, and he couldn’t help the smile. Thankfully, he could feel his heart rate coming down and was breathing more naturally.

“Sorry, Tony. You back with us?”

“I never left,” Tony said, struggling a little to break the Cloak’s hold. It let him loose without an argument, unlike last time. He took a few more deep breaths and pulled himself together. Terrible things were happening. This was no time for him to have a breakdown. Running a hand over his face, he asked, “What time are they coming tomorrow?”

“We can talk about that—“

“Bruce,” Tony interrupted. “It’s eleven PM, and they’re coming _tomorrow_. There is no later.”

Bruce winced a bit and said, “Noon. I think they wanted to come over first thing in the morning, but I was able to convince them that we needed time to get everyone here.”

Lifting an eyebrow, Tony asked, “Who, exactly, is everyone?”

“You, me, Rhodey, Spiderman, Strange—“

“They know about Stephen?” Tony asked.

Bruce smiled. “Tony, everyone knows about Stephen. You went to Coney Island and declared him a new Avenger. Kids took selfies with you giving him bunny ears. Someone took a really cute picture of you, and it’s been circulating everywhere for a week.”

“Right," Tony groaned, and fell back onto the sofa again. The Cloak covered him up from neck to foot again. “Whose bright idea was that again?”

“Yours?” 

“Ugh, I hate me.”

Bruce laughed and said, “Look we can discuss the specifics in the morning, but there’s not much to go over. You already know the details of their contracts. I just wanted to prepare you because…” He paused and gestured to Tony. “Well…”

“Cause I’m a mess whenever anyone brings up Rogers or Maximoff. Yeah, one hundred percent agree, Bruce.”

“Tony—“

“It’s fine,” Tony said, waving him off through the Cloak’s heavy fabric. “I’m gonna go to bed in a minute. You finish up whatever you need. I’ll see you in the morning.” 

Bruce looked at him like he knew Tony was lying, but wasn’t sure what to do. Eventually, he nodded and left.

The quiet fell over Tony like a veil, heavy and absolute. He reached out to pet the Cloak like he’d seen Stephen do from time to time. Its texture was soft but heavy, and its weight was extremely comforting. 

“We having another slumber party, Red?”

The Cloak was still for a moment, and Tony swore he could see it thinking. Finally, it shook its collar ‘no.’

“Really?” Tony frowned. “I have to take you back to the Sanctum tonight?”

The Cloak nodded its collar. 

“Well, okay. Hope you’re okay with mach one,” Tony said, tapping his nano casing and grabbing hold of the Cloak.

The Cloak moved out of Tony’s hands and settled on his shoulders. Tony was delighted but also had no desire to explain to Stephen how he’d lost his Cloak over the Hudson.

“Yeah, that’s not gonna do, Red. At least let me hold onto you.”

Tony walked over to the nearest terrace, grabbed the Cloak tightly with both hands, and took off.

“Friday, set course for the Sanctum.”

“Course set. ETA: five minutes.”

The stars were completely ignored by Tony’s racing mind. The Rogues were coming back tomorrow. He’d known this was going to happen soon, but he wasn’t ready. The night sky flew by and Tony allowed his thoughts to turn dark. He cursed himself for being so distracted by Stephen that he hadn’t truly prepared himself for the Rogues’ return.

And it wasn’t as though Tony had made any real progress on his relationship with Stephen anyway. He still had no idea how he really felt about him or what to do about it.

And now he was going to Stephen’s home. Wong had said something about projecting, but Tony wasn’t sure what that meant. Was that like what Stephen had done with the Time Stone?

He slowed down as he entered New York and waved to people who cheered and greeted him from the street. He landed about a block away from the Sanctum, figuring Iron Man was a little more recognizable at this time of night than Tony Stark wearing jeans and a t-shirt. And a Cloak. When he approached the Sanctum, the front doors opened for him again automatically.

He stepped inside, and the doors closed on their own. “Here we go, Red. Front door drop-off service,” Tony said, finally letting go of the Cloak.

He’d expected it to fly off his shoulders and find Stephen immediately, so he was surprised to see it still attached to him a moment later. He turned his head and discovered why.

“Oh, Red. Oh, you sweet thing.” Tony was horrified to find the Cloak shaking on his shoulders, obviously terrified. “Hey, buddy, I’m sorry. You okay?”

The Cloak shuddered again and wrapped around Tony harder.

If Tony wasn’t absolutely horrified at what he’d done, he’d be amused that his heart was breaking over a piece of fabric. “Hey, never again, okay?” Tony promised. 

A few moments went by while the Cloak collected itself, then finally left Tony’s shoulders. It shook itself one last time, then floated in front of Tony. It looked like it was considering him.

“Thanks for coming over tonight, buddy,” Tony said. He reached out a hand to run over the Cloak’s fabric. “Sometimes those things will last an hour and that’s…really terrible. I’m grateful you were there tonight.”

The Cloak shuddered, but in joy this time. Tony had no idea how he could tell the difference and yet…

“Honestly? I’m just really glad you’re in Stephen’s life.” Tony stuck his hands in his pockets and considered how weird it was to say this, but dismissed the thought. He needed to give credit where it was due. “I mean, I know Stephen has his own issues. You’re his service Cloak, right?” Tony said, laughing a bit. “I mean, you know everything. You were there on Titan, you were there when we got—“

Tony’s thoughts cut off as he realized something. The Cloak had been there when they’d gotten soul married on Titan. It had been there for every moment ever since. Stephen was never without it.

He’d thought no one knew exactly what was going on between him and Stephen except him and Stephen, but that wasn’t true.

_The Cloak knew._

“Well, that was just humanist of me,” Tony said to himself, then frowned. “Humanoid-ist of me? I don’t know. It’s some kind of -ist, and that’s never good. Right, Red. Buddy.” Tony held his hands out and gave the Cloak his best Tony Stark smile. “I need your help. Again.”

The Cloak tilted its collar to the side, and Tony marveled at how well it was able to communicate its thoughts through body language. 

Fabric language. 

_Stop being so humanoid-ist, Stark!_

“I…need someone to talk to. About Stephen. And I know, I know you’re Stephen’s Cloak, and I would never, ever ask you to go behind his back,” Tony said, running his hands through his hair and pacing. “But, Red, I’m dying here. And no one understands the full story, except for the two of us and you.” He put his hands up in a begging gesture because that’s what he was doing: begging. “Can I please talk to you?”

Tony was immediately cuddled by soft, warm fabric, and he allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief. He hadn’t known what he would do if the Cloak had said no. 

It then grabbed Tony by the hand and led him into a room just off the entrance hall.

Coming into the room, Tony saw it was a combination of library and museum. What must have been magical antiques were on tables around the room, some of them behind glass and some not. There were shelves and shelves of books that looked old enough they could probably be sold at auction. 

He walked around the room for a few minutes before he stopped when he saw Stephen sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed towards the back.

“Um…” he asked the Cloak. He’d thought he’d been pretty clear when he’d said he wanted to talk to the Cloak _about_ Stephen, not _to_ Stephen. 

The Cloak led Tony further into the library and gestured to one of two chairs facing each other. There was a little table between them, and on it a tea set. Tony sat down and the Cloak zipped off to another room again.

“Okay?’ he said to no one. He drummed his hands on the arms of the chair for a moment before curiosity got the better of him. He stood up and walked over to Stephen, seeing he was in a trance-type thing like he was on Titan. Only this time there were no green rings around his hands, and he sat unmoving.

This must be what astral projection looked like.

Maybe he shouldn’t, but as soon as Tony realized Stephen was in another state of consciousness, he allowed himself to take a closer look than he ever had before.

Had he really once thought Stephen was weird-looking? The thought made no sense to him now. He’d known when he’d first taken a good look he’d thought Stephen odd-looking and scrawny. Looking at him now, he couldn’t believe he’d hadn’t found Stephen absolutely gorgeous.

Because he was. Undoubtedly. 

His thoughts were disturbed by the Cloak coming back with a bottle of brown liquid, a glass, and a bottle of…

“What the hell? Is that Downy?”

The Cloak nodded its collar and gestured for him to sit down.

“Wow,” he said, picking up the bottle of fabric softener with a smirk. “You’re not hitting this on the regular, are you? Cause I gotta tell you, I don’t want you to drink and fly. I’ve been there, buddy. It’s not good.”

The Cloak shook its collar adamantly. 

“Good,” Tony said, bouncing on his heels a bit. “So how we gonna do this?”

The Cloak opened the bottle of…

“Is that… What the fuck is that?” Tony said, waiting until the Cloak had poured a little into his glass before he took the bottle. “Clan McGregor? Are Stephen and Wong actually drinking this crap?”

The Cloak nodded and poured itself a bottle cap of Downy.

“Unacceptable,” Tony muttered. “Friday, send over a case of the good stuff to the Sanctum. In fact, send a variety. Can’t have our newest Avenger drinking paint thinner.”

“You got it, boss.”

“I think you’re getting the better drink here, Red, but bottom’s up,” Tony said, then he and the Cloak took their drink together. Tony coughed a little as the taste of sour rubbing alcohol ran down his throat. “Oh, wow.”

He watched as the Cloak seemed to just _absorb_ the fabric softener and a pleasant floral aroma took to the air. 

“Thanks, buddy,” he coughed, then turned to make sure Stephen hadn’t awoken from his trance. “So, can he hear us?”

The Cloak shook its collar.

“You’re sure?”

It nodded.

“Okay,” Tony said, then held onto his death cup as he considered how to start this conversation while also trying not to think too hard about having a heart-to-heart with a piece of sentient fabric who was currently drinking fabric softener like it was whisky.

But then his life had always been kind of weird. This situation really shouldn’t surprise him.

“So, I…might have feelings for Stephen.”

The Cloak straightened up at that, and Tony swore it looked happy.

“Calm down, Red. It’s not that simple.” He put his glass down on the little table and bit his thumb.

“So here’s the thing: I know Stephen loves me,” Tony said, just getting to the heart of the issue. The Cloak knew it all already anyway. “And that’s the problem. I know I care about him, I know I’m attracted to him, God, am I attracted to him.” He thought of Stephen bloodied but triumphant against Loki, half his tunic torn off, showing off all that muscle…

The Cloak motioned for him to go on.

He cleared his throat, feeling caught out as though the Cloak could read his thoughts. “But Stephen loves me, Red. And I know that if I were to make a move without knowing one hundred percent that I love him back, I would be the absolute worst son of a bitch that ever lived. Stephen doesn’t deserve anything less than me being completely in love with him because I know he’s completely in love with me.”

The Cloak nodded slowly and took a sip of its fabric softener.

“And that’s the issue. I don’t know that I’m in love with him.” He turned around, but Stephen was still in his trance. “And the weirdest thing about this is, if it weren’t for our magic bond thing, this wouldn’t even be an issue.”

The Cloak made a questioning gesture, then motioned for Tony to continue.

“I mean, I really like him, Red. And he’s sexy as hell, we get along great, he’s a great friend. He’s going to be an Avenger! He knows what it’s like having to sacrifice for the greater good. I mean, if the scenario were any different we’d be dating right now.”

The Cloak nodded wisely, slowly pouring itself another shot of Downy.

“We’d just be…dating. Like people date, even if we aren’t exactly the definition of normal. Whatever that is. And I could just like him, and he could like me, and we could just fall in love like normal people.”

Tony looked behind himself again. 

“Instead, we’re magical married and any dumb move I make is gonna end up hurting him. And I can’t hurt him, Red.” 

Tony stood up abruptly, too anxious to keep sitting down. His feet automatically took him to Stephen, and his eyes lingered.

Stephen sat cross-legged, sitting up straight, hands resting on his thighs. His beard was just slightly unkempt, like he hadn’t shaved in a day or two. He was almost completely covered from neck to toe, but Tony couldn’t take his eyes off him.

“God, look at him. Honestly, if we didn’t have this bond thing, we’d probably be in bed together right now. Neither one of us would ever have to sleep alone again.” 

Without putting down its drink, the Cloak prodded at him. 

It took Tony a moment to interpret the Cloak’s poke. “Thanks, buddy. Yeah, I’m okay, but Stephen is something else. I mean, he’s just… he has a kind of otherworldly sort of beauty.” Tony sipped the last of the brown gunk and winced. “I bet the rest of him is amazing too.”

The Cloak grabbed Tony’s wrist and nodded.

“Wait…” Tony said, connecting the dots. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” The Cloak shrugged, but Tony thought his head was going to explode. "You live with him, right? You help him when he has trouble with his hands?”

The Cloak nodded, knowingly.

Tony bit his thumb and considered whether or not to ask the question. He turned around to check on Stephen, then turned back around to catch the Cloak floating way too innocently over its chair.

“So…you’ve seen it?” he asked softly.

The Cloak gave a slow nod.

“Okay,” Tony said. “So, what’s it like?”

The Cloak held its edges out about six inches, then about three inches.

“Nice,” Tony said, collapsing back into his chair. “I knew it,” he said to himself. “But okay! We’re getting off-topic. And the topic is…what the hell do I do? How can I possibly explore how I feel about Stephen without really hurting him in the process?”

The Cloak nodded and opened the bottle of crap to pour Tony another. Tony held up a hand.

“No, thanks. One’s my limit, has been for years. Even for the good stuff.” Tony sighed. “You go on ahead though. I got you home for the night, so you should be fine, right?”

The Cloak nodded and poured itself another shot.

Tony leaned his cheek on his hand and slouched in his chair. “I can feel his love for me, Red. Ever since we got married on Titan, it’s just…always with me. He was so sad for the longest time, and I can finally see those clouds beginning to clear. I’m doing my best to make him happy, but I’m just terrified of going too far and hurting him.” He sighed and leaned his head back. “I don’t know what to do.”

Putting down its cup, the Cloak floated over to Tony and grabbed his hands in its folds. With its collar it traced the line of Tony’s cheekbone, then tapped him on his chest, right where he could feel Stephen. 

_Listen to what your heart tells you._

It wasn’t bad advice.

“Yeah,” Tony said, and smiled. “You’re right. I just don’t know exactly how that plays out.”

The Cloak lifted its edges in doubt, as if saying ‘do any of us?’

Tony smiled, but the smile fell off his face as he heard a groan from behind him.

Quickly, he stood and ran over to Stephen, who was obviously having trouble unfolding his legs and standing. Tony winced as he saw Stephen try to brace himself to stand with his hands, then cry out in pain.

“Hey, here,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around Stephen’s middle and dragging him up to his feet.

“Leggo,” he grunted, squirming and obviously disoriented. Tony did his best to obey the command without allowing him to fall on his ass.

A beat later, Stephen seemed to come back to himself. “Tony?” he asked, squinting at Tony like he was facing the sun.

“Yeah, it’s me, Doc. You okay?”

Stephen nodded, stretching his back. “What time is it?”

“It’s uh…eleven thirty.”

Stephen looked up. “AM or PM?”

It looked like Tony and Stephen had one more thing in common. “PM,” he said, and now he really knew he was getting a dose of Pepper’s medicine.

“Ugh,” Stephen groaned, bending his legs. "I’ve been twisted into a pretzel for eighteen hours. No wonder my entire body is on fire.”

He tried to take a step, but Tony was paying close enough attention to see him lose his footing. Just before he fell, Tony caught him, one hand behind his back, another cupped behind his knees. 

He could have just steadied him or caught him around the middle like he had a moment ago, Tony knew. But then he wouldn’t have the excuse he now had to literally be holding Stephen in his arms. Tony caught Stephen’s eyes—those beautiful blue eyes—and held onto him for dear life. 

“You okay, Doc?” he asked, smiling.

The butterfly behind Tony’s heart was fluttering overtime.

“Yes,” Stephen breathed.

Out of the corner of his eye, Tony saw the Cloak watching them. Tony must have been getting _really_ good at reading its fabric language because he could tell it was amused.

As much as Tony would have been okay with holding Stephen bridal-style all night, holding him without the armor wasn’t as easy as he might have wanted. “You okay to stand on your own?” Tony asked. He smiled just a little and asked, “Or do you want me to drop you off in your room?”

“What? No!” Stephen said, then struggled to put his feet on the ground. Tony let him down gently and helped him get to his feet. “Thank you, Tony. I’m fine now. Nothing a good night’s rest won’t fix.” He cracked his neck, then asked the Cloak, “Would you please get me some water?”

The Cloak zipped off to bring it.

“What was all that, Doc?” Tony asked, gesturing to where Stephen had been projecting. “What happened that you were gone for eighteen hours?”

Stretching his legs, Stephen walked towards the little table where the Cloak had left the bottle, glass, and Downy. “Ugh,” he grunted. His hand hovered over the cap to the fabric softener, but he hesitated in picking it up. 

“A sorcerer supreme from another dimension is missing. We were uncertain as to whether he was actually missing or if he was just occupied, but after an extensive search I was unable to find either him or any of his students.” He paced the room and flexed his fingers with a wince. “This is especially worrying after finding those slugs at Coney Island the other day.”

The idea of a pattern that involved magic made Tony’s blood run cold. “You think they could be related?”

“I don’t know. But possibly. I’m afraid something terrible might have happened to Zoso.” He pulled his knees up and stretched out his legs, wincing when he tried to grip under his thighs.

“Need help?” Tony asked automatically, then groaned inwardly at himself.

“Um, no,” Stephen said slowly, then frowned. “And why are you here?”

“Ouch, Doc.” He held a hand to his heart. “I can’t just drop by and say hi to my magic husband?”

“Bondmate,” Stephen said, also automatically, Tony guessed. “And yeah, sure, but you never have before.”

What started out as a dumb joke suddenly had Tony feeling like a neglectful spouse. His eyes drifted to the floor even as he told himself that he’d been legitimately busy lately, that Stephen understood because he was an Avenger too…

“Tony, I didn’t mean—“

“Steve and the other Rogues are coming back tomorrow.”

Stephen took a step back like he’d been slapped. “What? Without prior notice?”

“Yeah,” Tony said, and walked a small circle around the room, his arms crossed. 

The Cloak chose that moment to come back into the room and handed a water bottle to Tony.

“Um,” Tony said, looking at the bottle, then Stephen. “Oh!” He opened the bottle for Stephen and handed it to him.

Stephen was giving the Cloak a nasty look.

The Cloak was completely still in a way Tony had never seen before. Somehow in this epic stare-down, a light managed to click on in Tony’s head.

He’d be irritated at the Cloak slacking on the job except that Tony had literally just been asking it for relationship advice. Damn matchmaking Cloaks.

“Here,” Tony said, towards Stephen’s hands. “How about if I just steady it?” 

The frown slowly slid off Stephen’s face.

His eyes went from the Cloak to the ground, and Tony saw what might have been an attempt at clenching his fists. There was a burning in his chest, and Tony knew it was reflecting the shame Stephen was feeling.

There was a lot Tony wanted to say just then. It was all on the tip of his tongue: how there was no shame in asking for help, especially from a friend. How Tony didn’t mind, how he had his own battle wounds and Stephen’s were just a little more obvious.

But Tony didn’t say any of that. Stephen didn’t need to hear it.

Instead he said, “You hold it.” He slowly, gently reached for Stephen’s hands, and helped them wrap around the bottle. “I’ll just steady it.” 

Tony didn’t move, even held his breath, while he waited for Stephen to move his hands or let go. Then there was a shift in his shoulders, and the hard look in his eyes softened. He moved his hands so Tony could tilt the bottle for him to drink.

For just a moment, their eyes met over the bottle, before Stephen closed his eyes in relief. With Stephen not looking, Tony let himself smile.

Stephen finished the water quickly, and Tony put the empty bottle on the little table. 

“What time will they get there?” Stephen asked, breaking the intimate moment.

“Noon,” Tony replied.

“I’ll be there at eight,” Stephen said, and Tony felt his heart soar.

Stephen smiled, then walked over to Tony, his hand slowly rising to his chest. He parted Tony’s shirt and gently touched the pendant around his neck. “Team Stark,” he said softly. “I won’t leave your side. I promise.”

Tony couldn’t help himself. It was just too much. With as much care as he could manage, he took Stephen’s hand in his own. He watched as a blush spread from Stephen’s cheeks down past the collar of his tunic. He felt the echo of his own heart beating double time in Stephen’s chest.

“Team Strange,” Tony whispered. “All the way.”

Stephen seemed to wage a losing battle against giving Tony a goofy smile. Ducking his head and avoiding his eyes, Tony felt like he was missing out on something.

“Hey, where’d you go?” he asked playfully. “Look at me.”

The goofy smile was still there when Stephen’s eyes met his. Bashful looked good on him. It gave Stephen a sweetness Tony would have never thought was possible when he’d first met him. 

“You have the prettiest smile,” Tony said, gently squeezing Stephen’s hand and watching as his face transformed.

There it was. The smile he’d seen today but not on the real Stephen’s face. For just a moment, the look Stephen gave Tony was all carefree joy. Where Loki’s abomination had just had a slight tilt of malice, Stephen’s was pure beauty. Tony couldn’t help the ear-to-ear grin that he gave back.

It only lasted for a second before something sad took over Stephen’s face and the burning that had been in Tony’s heart turned cold. He slowly pulled his hand away and looked down.

“Thank you,” he said, and Tony knew he’d done something wrong. Maybe he’d been coming on too strong or maybe Stephen wasn’t ready to hear something like that coming from Tony. Or maybe he didn’t believe him.

Either way, Tony had just hurt Stephen like he’d been trying so hard not to. Failure felt absolutely terrible.

“I’m exhausted,” Stephen said, walking backwards to the door. “I’ll portal over first thing in the morning, alright?”

“Yeah, Doc,” Tony said, putting his hands in his pockets. “I’m sure I’ll be up at the crack of dawn, so just come on over.” He shifted on his feet for a moment before a thought occurred to him. “Oh, and Wong has your phone.”

“Oh,” Stephen said, patting his pocket. “I’ve been so busy for the last week I haven’t had it on me. I’ll get it from him before I leave tomorrow.”

 _Uh oh_ , Tony thought, suddenly terrified. “So, you haven’t been on social media all week?”

“I’m not really on social media, ever,” Stephen said, then frowned. “Why?”

“No reason.” Tony tried really hard not to feel like a complete liar. That was definitely going to come back to bite him in the ass.

“Okay,” Stephen said hesitantly. “Goodnight then.” He turned around and started walking towards the staircase before he paused and asked, “Are you coming?”

Tony’s heart just about leaped out of his chest and he felt all his blood rush south. 

“Umm…”

“The Cloak!” Stephen shouted, turning bright red before putting his face in his hands. “I meant the Cloak. It’s my blanket.”

“Ah, right,” Tony said, not at all disappointed. “Yeah,” he said, awkwardly putting his hands behind his back. “I…knew that. So…I’ll see you in the morning.”

Stephen waved goodnight with one hand while hiding his face with the other. His embarrassment would have been a lot cuter if Tony hadn’t been responsible for it.

“Goodnight, Doc,” Tony said, leaving the Sanctum. He stood on the sidewalk for a moment, contemplating how quickly that had turned sour. And why all his recent encounters with Stephen always started out so great and then ended with Tony putting his foot in his mouth. 

He tapped his nano casing and let the suit flow over him. He was in no rush to get back to the Compound, but he needed to make preparations.

It was going to be another long night.

*

Well that had been a bust, the Cloak thought to itself. How difficult could it be to get these two together? 

Apparently harder than it had originally thought. It floated in the library and had one more shot of Downy while contemplating the task before it.

Stephen loved Tony. And the Cloak was pretty sure Tony loved Stephen, even if he himself didn’t completely realize it yet. All this dancing around each other was becoming frustrating. 

And Stephen would be sad if this went on for much longer. The Cloak hated it when Stephen was sad.

Screwing the top back on the bottle, the Cloak contemplated what would be happening tomorrow as it made the journey upstairs. It had to be on its fiercest behavior, of course. There was no way it would allow anyone to push Tony or Stephen around. And it would have to be careful not to allow the rogue Avengers to be critical of Stephen’s hands. That just couldn’t happen.

And it also needed to stay close enough to Tony in case he needed it…

If the Cloak had lungs, it would sigh in exhaustion. Tomorrow would be a difficult day.

It opened the door to Stephen’s bedroom, finding its master already asleep after a long day of astral projecting. It draped itself over him and nestled down to rest as well.

Not a moment went by before Stephen roused from his sleep, sniffing with an air of disgust.

“Ugh!” he groaned, waving a hand in front of his face. “How many did you have?”

The Cloak tried to wave its collar to get rid of the smell, but that didn’t help.

“You stink! Get off of me!” Stephen grunted. “Go sleep on the couch.”

If the Cloak had lungs, it would sigh in annoyance. The Cloak never made judgements when Stephen would eat his ice cream, even if it did make his hands too cold. 

Hmph! Maybe it would switch to Snuggle. Stephen might prefer that instead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thanks to carrottheluvmachine for the suggestion that the Cloak's poison be fabric softener. This chapter was outlined with Tony and the Cloak sharing at drink and talking about Stephen since my first napkin scribble. It was a lot of fun to write. 
> 
> The Rogue Avengers are coming back in the next chapter! Also, the next chapter is a very important one. It's currently sitting at 11k and is just getting to the amazing betas silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus. They are wonderful and if anyone enjoys this fic, it's because they help make it readable. 
> 
> If you're on tumblr, come find me. [my tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com)


	12. The Sword

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has given kudos and comments! The last chapter got fifty comments, which is a new record for me. I'm so glad you all enjoyed it, especially the Cloak. 
> 
> The Cloak was also a big hit with glaucous_atlanticus, so now there's going to be a chapter from the Cloak's POV. That's going to be fun to write.
> 
> And speaking of writing, I'm going to be taking a one week break. I have now written over 90k words (posted 88k and have a 5k draft of next chapter) in under three months. I am _sleepy_. But like I said, the next chapter is already in draft form. I'm just taking a little breather. If anyone would like to discuss the chapter, I'll be on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com). 
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus. You are wonderful and if anyone enjoys this fic, it's because of you two.

"Today of all days,” Stephen muttered, his hands submerged up to his wrists in warm water.

The worst part of his current predicament was that he only had himself to blame. He hadn’t meant to astral project for so long, but he’d wanted to exhaust every avenue he could to find Zoso and his students. And he was much safer investigating the 13th dimension in his astral form, so watching his own back had been less of an issue. He should have given greater consideration to what he was doing to his body—especially his hands—back on Earth.

It had all been for nothing anyway. There was no trace of Zoso, and Stephen had run out of places to look for him. It was beyond troubling. Zoso was one of the greatest Sorcerer Supremes in the multiverse. Stephen didn’t want to imagine what could defeat him.

The Cloak zipped up from behind and tried to give him a bottle of water.

“Oh, now you want to help?” Stephen asked, his tone dripping with disdain. “What was that last night?”

The Cloak just shrugged and again gestured for Stephen to tilt his head back for the water. 

Denying the Cloak’s help would only hurt its feelings and leave Stephen struggling. The memory of being cold all night served as a reminder that there was little point to pride. Besides, he was extremely thirsty, so he let the Cloak help him drink. 

He should be far more angry with the Cloak than he actually was, but he couldn’t make himself regret the way Tony had held him last night. These stolen moments were starting to add up, and Stephen hated that a part of him was starting to hope. 

Hope that maybe Tony might actually…

It was a stupid dream, he told himself and flexed his fingers under the warm water. Tony flirted with everybody, but he did care about Stephen. He could feel the little combustion engine purring away behind his heart, and Stephen knew Tony’s affection for him was growing. He could feel it.

But that was completely natural. They were spending more time together, growing their friendship. And Stephen was glad for it. He cherished what he had with Tony, and the addition of Peter into his life. He needed to stop hoping for more.

The Cloak held up his straight-edge razor and can of shaving cream in question.

“I don’t know,” Stephen said, monotone. “Maybe Tony wants to help me shave.”

The Cloak looked scandalized.

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do,” Stephen said as the Cloak lathered his face. “I know you’re only trying to help, and I appreciate it.” He stayed silent for a moment as the Cloak shaved his neck. “But Tony doesn’t think of me that way. I know he doesn’t.” He lightly tapped his own chest. “Really. I’d know if his feelings had changed.” 

He tilted his head so the Cloak could shave his cheeks. “They’ve grown. It’s nice how…warm he feels about me. But he doesn’t love me.”

And that was okay, Stephen told himself. He already had so much. More than he’d dreamed he would have. It was enough.

_It was enough, it was enough, it was enough._

The Cloak tapped him on the shoulder, then cleaned, and put away the blade.

“Thank you.”

Carefully, Stephen performed the hand movements needed to dress magically. The belts twined around his waist, and he regretted that he couldn’t bring The Eye of Agamotto with him. He would if this were any other battle, but Stephen knew better than to show his hand so early in the game.

And technically it wasn’t a battle.

Technically, it was lunch.

“Go get my gloves,” he said to the Cloak and took his sling ring from one of the pockets. It would hurt like hell using it today, but there was no way he was using the car service Tony gave him. Plus, his hands already ached horribly. What was a little more pain?

A few moments later, Stephen realized the Cloak hadn’t left. It just floated there, waiting.

“What?” Stephen said, then sighed. “I’m not in the mood for this today.”

The Cloak continued to float. Its stillness said multitudes. 

“Shut. Up.”

The Cloak still just floated.

Stephen groaned. “You know what your problem is?” Stephen said, putting up a finger to the Cloak’s collar. “The problem is that you’re giving romantic relationships more value than friendships. Everyone does.” 

_Including me._

“And that’s ridiculous and insulting. You’re assuming that my relationship with Tony has less value because it’s not romantic. Friendships are a great thing. Do you know how many real friends I had before you and Wong? Zero. I was horrifically lonely, and I didn’t even realize it.”

Stephen dropped his hand and paced the room. He wanted to run a hand through his hair, but stopped himself. Today was going to be absolute murder if he didn’t control himself.

He turned back to look at the Cloak. Aside from turning towards Stephen, it hadn’t moved. It just stayed in that one position, floating. 

Closing his eyes, Stephen groaned. “Okay, yes. You’re right. I do sometimes wish my relationship with Tony was different. And yes, I do love him. But there’s no point in dwelling in it. I did for a while, and what did it get me? Nothing.”

Stephen charged out of the room, and the Cloak finally broke its stillness to follow him.

“And now? Now we’re friends,” Stephen said, turning into the room where his gloves were kept. “We have family game night. We had ice cream. We went to Coney Island together, for fuck sake.”

His gloves were sitting on a table, but he paused before he put them on.

“And you know what? I don’t even know why I’m defending myself to you. Especially when there’s nothing to defend!”

Finally, he slipped on one glove. He sighed with relief as he felt the warmth engulf his hands, penetrating deep inside his aching fingers.

His eyes were still closed, but he knew if he turned around the Cloak would still be there, waiting.

“I can’t make him love me.” He turned around and faced his friend. “And it’s not his fault that he doesn’t. No amount of forcing us into intimate situations is going to change that.”

The Cloak finally moved, engulfing him in a hug Stephen didn’t know he needed. His body went slack as he melted into the embrace, taking as much comfort as he could.

“I do appreciate you though.” He put his cheek into the Cloak’s soft fabric, nuzzling it. “You’re a good friend.”

The Cloak patted his shoulder, then released him. It zipped from Stephen’s side to the doorway and pointed towards the kitchen. 

Stephen shook his head. “It’s late enough as it is. It’ll take too long to have breakfast. I’ll make do.” Wincing, he put on the sling ring and made a portal. “Come on.”

The Cloak grabbed his other glove and attached itself to Stephen’s shoulders just as he stepped over from the Sanctum to the Compound.

“If I have to look at it, Stark, so do you!”

Stephen heard Loki shout at Tony and rolled his eyes. He put his sling ring away as quickly as he could and let the Cloak put on his other glove. The voices were coming from around the corner. He looked up as he entered what seemed to be a common room. There were couches surrounding a large TV mounted to the wall, a dining room table with takeout boxes, and an office-type area with a large desk and several wingback chairs. The smell of bacon and baked bread wafted through the air and set Stephen’s stomach rumbling. 

Upon further inspection, there were also dozens of pictures of him and Tony in what seemed to be an intimate embrace hanging up all over the room.

An icy fist grabbed his heart as he looked around, the image of him and Tony smiling and looking into each other’s eyes burning through him. This must have been the picture the professional took at Coney Island. Stephen recognized the outfit he’d been wearing, saw the Cloak in its camouflaged state, but he had a hard time believing it.

The look he and Tony were sharing, the smile that was on both their faces, the way their bodies were leaning into each other. It all cut Stephen to his core. 

They looked like they were in love.

And it was plastered all over the room. This terrible lie.

“Damn,” Tony said softly, finally noticing Stephen. “Now look what you did, you asshole.”

“Um…” Stephen said softly while trying to pull himself together. 

“Good morning, Doc!” Tony said, his arms outstretched and a smile on his face. “Sorry about the pictures. Loki figured out how to use a printer, apparently.” Stephen would’ve seen through the smile in an instant, even if he hadn’t known Tony was feeling guilty. 

Tony currently felt like he wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. Stephen could empathize. He also wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.

The sound of paper tearing interrupted his spiraling thoughts. Tony was trying to tear down one of the pictures above the dining area. “What are you, twelve?” Tony asked Loki, and Stephen watched as Tony tore down another picture, only to see a duplicate underneath. It went on like that for five pictures before Tony gave up. “Take them down. Now.”

Loki rolled his eyes and waved a hand. All the pictures vanished.

“Sorry about that,” Tony said. He gently took Stephen’s elbow and led him towards the dining room table. 

Feeling hollowed out and hands still in pain, Stephen allowed himself to be led.

“That’s the picture the pro took?” he asked, though he already knew the answer. “Is it photoshopped?”

Tony pulled a chair out for Stephen and frowned. “No.”

That couldn’t possibly be true. The way Tony was looking at him…

“If I have to endure this for one more minute, I’m going to lose my breakfast,” Loki said, standing up and leaving the room. 

“Well that’s one problem gone,” Tony said. He gave Stephen a plate and opened one of the takeout boxes. “Sorry about that. That picture of us kinda went viral after it was posted. I knew we were aiming to get you some good publicity, and…well, mission accomplished.

“The press was mostly positive. It helped that your first outing was saving people from space slugs, even if they technically weren’t hurting anyone. People online mostly had a good response. I mean, of course there are always going to be assholes, but I think this is some of the most positive press I’ve had in a long time.”

A shiver passed through Stephen again as he started to realize what Tony meant.

“Good, how?” he asked.

Tony frowned. “What do you mean?”

“The people online,” Stephen clarified. “Some of them had good things to say. What were they?”

Tony’s fear stabbed at him like a knife, putting every terrible thought he could have to the forefront of his mind. Stephen put his hand in his pocket, and tried to grip his phone only to drop it on the floor. 

The Cloak quickly picked it up for him, but Stephen was still wearing his gloves. There would be no fine navigation with his hands being the way they were today.

“Phone,” he said, then waited for the ping. “Show me the top hits for Doctor Strange and Tony Stark.”

“Doc…”

Stephen waved him off. He watched as the picture of him and Tony loaded at the top of the page, then read the various headlines.

Most of the bigger, more established media giants focused on the slugs and speculation on Stephen’s new Avenger status. Many asked questions about his magic and wondered when he would be introduced to the world and what his powers might be. Some questioned how many new Avengers were needed and how they would be recruited.

The sites more geared towards social media and gossip confirmed what Stephen feared.

**Tony Stark Just Reminded Us He’s Bisexual in a Very Big Way**

**Tony Stark Finds Romance with New Avenger**

**Who is Tony Stark’s new flame? Ten facts about Doctor Strange, the newest Avenger**

The room was spinning. Or maybe Stephen was, he couldn’t be sure. All he knew was that he was suddenly very dizzy, and the Cloak was trying to swaddle him. 

The entire world thought he and Tony were together. They took one look at that picture and believed the lie. Stephen had no idea what to do about this. How could he endure the entire world thinking something he only wished was true?

“Doc? Stephen?” 

He heard Tony calling out to him, but he couldn’t respond right now. He was too busy trying to calm down, knowing instinctively that panicking wouldn’t help but unable to help himself. He concentrated on the warmth of the Cloak, on the pain in his hands, the smell of bacon in the air, and tried to calm himself down.

“Hey, Stephen, I’m sorry,” Tony said, then gently took one of Stephen’s hands.

The pain that laced through them was enough to bring him back.

“Don’t!” he shouted, tearing his hands away. 

Immediately, Tony removed his hand, putting them both up in a sign of surrender. “I’m sorry.”

His hand throbbing, Stephen shook his head and closed his eyes. “Do not touch my hands if you see me wearing these gloves.”

“Got it,” Tony said with finality. "Never again.”

Stephen let his phone fall to the table with a loud clatter. “What are we going to do about this?” 

“Whatever you want,” Tony said quickly. At Stephen’s glare, he continued, “We can make a statement when we formally announce you as a new Avenger. Say we’re very good friends, the photographer caught us playing around with each other, we’re teammates. Whatever you want.”

That was all fine, but he knew how these things worked. Once the idea was presented to the public, it was never going to go away. Even if Tony eventually dated someone else, he’d always be linked back to Stephen. That was just the world they were in. 

The world Stephen had voluntarily stepped into.

Bracing himself, Stephen looked at the picture again.

Tony was leaning against a railing, and it was Stephen who was leaning into him. Not the other way around. He’d given off a clear signal of his feelings for Tony, and someone just happened to catch a picture of it.

He sighed. The very idea of the outing was to get Stephen out in the public eye. He’d known exactly what he’d gotten himself into. There was little cause to be angry at Tony. 

Except for one thing.

“When did this begin to circulate?” he asked.

“The picture?”

Stephen remained silent. Of course, he meant the picture.

“The same night,” Tony said, shifting in his seat. “I thought you saw them and were just too busy to respond. Honest, Doc.”

That much was true, Stephen could tell. He had been busy all last week, what with informing the elder sorcerers of his findings, researching what could have caused the slugs to flee, and keeping up with the training of the novices.

Plus, he hadn’t checked his phone once all week. He’d have known if Tony had been in trouble, so there was no need. And he hadn’t had time for any social calls.

All that was understandable. One thing was not.

“You came to my home last night,” Stephen said. “Why didn’t you mention it then?”

Tony tapped one finger on the table, and as he considered his answer. His face twisted, and it looked like the words were torn from his mouth as he said, “I was afraid.”

Stephen scoffed. “Try again.”

“No, really. It hadn’t occurred to me that you hadn’t seen them until I was halfway out the door. By then, I really was just terrified of bringing it up. In hindsight, I really wish I had. I’m sorry, Doc.”

Tony’s regret felt like a festering wound, something that wouldn’t heal until dealt with.

“Remember that talk we had about trust? About how you needed to be able to trust me, even if it was a life and death situation.” He stood and paced the dining area, then said, “Well, this wasn’t life or death, but it was important. And I need to be able to trust you, too.”

Tony’s face crumbled.

_Guilt_

_Fear_

_Regret_

“You should have told me,” Stephen said. “How did you think this was going to go?”

Tony shook his head. “I don’t think I even thought that through. If I had, I would have told you. But you’re right. I should have told you. I’m sorry. I’ll do better going forward, I promise.”

Stephen sighed and focused on the pain in his hands to center his roiling anger. It was difficult to stay angry at someone when you could feel their guilt in your own heart. Tony’s hand was resting on the table. Stephen grunted and slowly placed his hand on top of it.

“Don’t do that again,” Stephen said.

He could feel Tony’s hand tense as he wanted to turn his hand over to take Stephen’s but refrained. Tony slowly nodded and said, “Okay.”

“Well, that was one more thing I didn’t need to deal with today,” Stephen said, taking his hand back. “What’s happening right now?”

A hesitant, somewhat fearful grin slowly appeared on Tony’s face. “Now we eat breakfast,” he said, digging back into the takeout box sitting on the table. The smell of bacon that Stephen had concentrated on a moment before drifted out of the box. Stephen’s stomach rumbled, but he ignored it. 

The vulnerability he’d shown in front of Tony yesterday was fine, but today he’d have to face the rogue Avengers. Today they weren’t alone.

“Bruce should be up in a minute with the contracts,” Tony said, filling a plate and putting it in front of Stephen. “And Peter and May should be coming up any minute now. Rhodey’s doing his PT, and Vision is coming in with Rogers and company.”

Stephen looked at the plate Tony had set in front of him. On it there were two buns, both large and completely engulfing what smelled like eggs and bacon. They were the perfect size for him to grab, and with the way the bread was wrapped, the fillings would be easy to eat.

He looked at Tony in wonder.

“I figured after yesterday maybe…” Tony said sheepishly, gesturing to the buns. “Did I get it wrong?”

“No,” Stephen said. Slowly, he gripped one of the buns and took a bite. Eggs and bacon, just like he’d thought. He smiled as his stomach finally stopped its rumbling. “You did it right.”

Tony smiled at him, and it was like the sun shining was shining in Stephen’s face.

The sound of soft footsteps interrupted them. 

“Good morning!” Stephen heard and turned to greet whoever had just walked in. “Oh, hello, Doctor Strange,” Doctor Banner said, approaching the table with a Starkpad in one hand and a stack of folders in another. “It’s good to see you again.”

Stephen swallowed and stood up to greet him. “Good to see you, Doctor Banner. Please call me Stephen.”

“Bruce,” he said, then gestured to the table. “Don’t let me keep you from breakfast. It’s going to be a long morning.” He tapped the folders. “Tony, I’ve got everything ready for everyone to read and sign.”

“Is mine in there?” Stephen asked before taking another bite.

“Yeah. Triple checked by Tony’s attorneys and then again by me.” He placed the folder in front of Stephen, and the Cloak opened it to the first page.

“Hey, Mr. Stark, Doctor Strange!” Peter said as he bounded into the room, May not far behind. 

Stephen looked up from his contract just long enough to greet them. 

“I can’t believe you went to Coney Island without me, Doctor Dad,” Peter whined.

Tony cocked an eyebrow. “Why don’t you ask Thor take you to Coney Island? You love Thor so much maybe ask him. Oh, wait. He has no idea what Coney Island is, and even if he did, he’d probably just end up wrestling a shark.”

“That would be so cool,” Peter said. Stephen smiled around his bacon.

The next hour was dedicated to reading the very long and very complex contract in his hands, occasionally being distracted by Peter and May asking questions of Bruce regarding Peter’s own contract. At some point, Peter grew bored and wandered over to the TV area with the Cloak and started watching Aladdin.

Stephen had to concentrate on his contract and not on how much he still loved cartoons.

Once Stephen was satisfied he understood and approved of his contract, he asked Tony for a pen, then beckoned the Cloak with a nod. 

“Stand behind me please,” he said to Tony, then waited for him to comply. Hidden from the other people in the room, Stephen allowed the Cloak to grip his hand as he signed his name.

His signature looked like he’d written it through an earthquake, but it was legible. That was all he could hope for.

“Thank you,” he said.

“Any time, Doc,” Tony said, rubbing Stephen’s shoulder through the Cloak. He leaned into the touch without thinking. The Cloak rubbed Tony’s hand back, then—task completed—went to Peter again.

“So, Peter’s going to be an auxiliary Avenger only,” Stephen heard May say from the office area of the room.

“Right,” Bruce said. “Disaster relief and clean-up, but only once the main threat is over. The only time they’ll be calling him in to do any actual fighting is in an ‘end of the world’ type event.”

May put up a hand in exasperation. “But who’s to say what an ‘end of the world’ type threat is? Who decides that? The United Nations?”

“I will,” Tony said. “I’m not gonna let him on the field if we don’t absolutely need him, May.”

“But Tony,” she said, pleading, “if it’s an end of the world threat, how could you possibly guarantee his safety?”

It was a good question. Tony put his hands in his pockets and said, “If I call him in, it means that his life is in danger whether he’s on the field or not.”

May bit her lip and nodded. She looked over the contract again and tapped the pen on the desk.

“Peter might be a kid,” Stephen said, trying to ease her mind, “but he’s very mature for his age. Without his help, I would have died before we got to Titan.”

“That’s right,” Tony said, pointing at Stephen. “Very mature for his age.”

_”A whole new world, don’t you dare close your eyes!_ ,” Peter sang as he flew by, riding the Cloak like it was a magic carpet. _”A hundred thousand things to see!”_

“Damn it, kid,” Tony said, his face and palm meeting.

May laughed nervously, then nodded. Still looking doubtful, she signed Peter’s contract. 

“Doctor Strange, the Cloak is the best flying carpet!” Peter said. The Cloak took him higher and then dropped down like it was a rollercoaster. “Whoa!”

The Cloak flew right past the entryway to the kitchen just as Thor and Loki stepped through.

“Mr. Thor!” Peter cried and jumped mid-air from the Cloak onto Thor’s back. He whooped as Thor took his weight easily and bounced Peter a few times.

“Thor, there’s a child on your back,” Loki said, looking at Peter like he was an oddity to be studied. Stephen felt Tony’s apprehension and fear and matched it with his own.

It seemed neither of them had considered Peter encountering Loki.

“This is Peter, Stark’s son by bond,” Thor said, putting Peter down. 

Peter finally realized who had entered into the room with Thor and immediately stilled. With a jut of his chin, the Cloak took Stephen’s cue and put itself on Peter’s shoulders. Stephen held his breath. Peter stood straighter, his muscles tensed and the carefree smile fell from his face.

_”See, May?”_ Stephen thought. _”He does have some sense.”_

“Stark’s son?” Loki said, looking at Peter carefully. Stephen saw a dozen plans within plans pass through Loki’s eyes before he smirked and looked over to Tony and Stephen.

Stephen felt Tony tense, but Stephen was more curious as to what Loki would do. The look he gave Tony might have seemed malicious at first glance, but Stephen saw it for what it might actually be: mischievous.

And Loki was the god of mischief. And he seriously doubted Thor would let Peter near Loki if he was a threat.

He couldn’t explain exactly why he trusted Loki not to hurt Peter, but he had a feeling his instinct was right. All the same, the Cloak remained on Peter’s shoulders.

“I am Loki,” he said to Peter, “brother of Thor and prince of Asgard.”

“I know who you are, Mr. Loki,” Peter said, his tone far more harsh than Stephen had ever heard before. “I was in school when you attacked New York.”

“Ah,” Loki said, and for a split second looked to the ground. He didn’t shift his feet or wring his hands or any of the tells Stephen might have done if he felt guilty, but Stephen could sense it all the same. “I wasn’t myself at the time. There were…extenuating circumstances that led to my actions.”

“My brother was tortured by—“

“Shut up, Thor!” Loki shouted. “I can make my own apologies.” He turned back to Peter but not before glaring at Thor. “As I said, I was not myself. And I do plan to make amends.” He rolled his eyes. “For a very long time. I am sorry.”

Peter shifted on his feet for a moment. He’s such a great kid. Peter wrestled with the desire to forgive Loki versus the enormity of what he’d done.

“Would you like to see a magic trick?” Loki asked, again smiling at Tony and Stephen.

Tony tapped his nano casing and called up a gauntlet, but Thor put up a hand.

“My brother would not harm a child.”

Tony backed down for the moment, and Stephen went over to stand by him, their shoulders touching. He could feel the tension in Tony’s body, how he was prepared to move in an instant.

“Sure,” Peter said, the set of his shoulders more relaxed, but not like it had been before Loki entered the room. The Cloak was still upon his shoulders, like a snake ready to strike.

Loki conjured a coin from midair. He showed it to Peter, then hid it behind Peter’s ear. Then he pulled his hand back and showed the coin was gone.

Peter scoffed but tried to smile politely. “Good one.”

Loki tapped his chin, then smiled. “Oh, wait, maybe it’s in the other ear,” Loki said, then put his hand next to Peter’s other ear.

When he pulled his hand back, he was holding a kitten.

“Oh, my God!” Peter cried, gripping the kitten with two hands.

Peter gasped. Even Stephen acknowledged it was a neat trick. The kitten wasn’t magical, like his butterflies, but was an actual flesh and blood kitten.

“Loki, please,” said Loki, smiling.

“Oh, my God, I love him. Look at him! He’s so little and fluffy!” 

The kitten mewed in Peter’s hands. 

It began to lightly snow.

“Brother, where did you get that kitten?” Thor asked.

“Nowhere it will be missed,” said Loki. “Did you know they destroy these creatures on a daily basis?”

Thor frowned. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

“It’s true,” Tony said. “And why is it snowing in my living room?”

“Benign magic,” Stephen said, hiding his gloved hands from the snow. “A large amount of it. As in, enough to pull a kitten from across a distance.” He gestured to his heart. “Like my butterflies on Titan.”

“At least I have the courtesy to vanish it,” Loki said, then waved a hand and the snow was gone. “I’m not going to put them in the ice box so you have to look at them later.”

“Okay, what just happened?” Tony asked, putting up a hand. “Did Loki just give Peter a cat?”

“Thank you so much, Mr. Loki. I’m gonna name him Flapjack!” Peter cried, cuddling the kitten to his face with an ear to ear smile.

“Do not name the cat,” Tony said. “You are not keeping the cat.”

“What?” Peter said, while Loki went to stand next to Peter.

“But Stark, Peter loves the kitten. Don’t you, Peter?” Loki said. Peter’s focus was on Tony, and Loki gave he and Stephen a devilish smile.

“I do! I just met him, but if anything happened to him, I would kill everyone in this room, and then myself.”

“Um, what?” Stephen said.

“It’s a meme,” May said from the other side of the room. “Ignore him.”

“Please, please, Mr. Stark, can I keep him?”

Even though he was forever on Tony’s side, Stephen couldn’t help but laugh. They had both been so concerned Loki would attack Peter, when they should have been worried he’d use him to get under Tony’s skin. 

And it worked perfectly.

“Something funny, Doc?” Tony asked, obviously treading the line of angry at Loki and angry at Stephen.

“No, not at all,” Stephen said, and hid his smile.

“Peter,” May said, finally walking over. “Our apartment doesn’t allow pets. You can’t keep Flapjack.” She looked honestly regretful for having to break the news. “I’m sorry.”

Peter looked like he was about to cry. 

Loki just kept smugly staring at Tony, .

Tony stared back for a moment, then finally sighed and took out his phone. 

“Yeah, don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of it. You can keep the cat, kid.”

“What?” May asked while Peter shouted, “Thank you, Mr. Stark!”

“I’ll take care of it,” Tony repeat, typing something out on his phone, then smiling at May. “I’ll talk to the landlord. No problem. Peter can keep his cat.”

May breathed a sigh of relief. “Tony, gosh, thank you. He’s never had a pet before. Oh, we’ll have to stop by the pet store on the way home.”

“I’ll have it all delivered,” Tony said, finishing up whatever he was doing on his phone. “Don’t worry about a thing.”

May wrapped her arms around Tony and thanked him again.

In the living room, Loki conjured a ball of yarn and played with the kitten, who was between Peter’s crossed legs.

When May went to see what was left from breakfast, Stephen whispered to Tony, “You’re just going to buy the building, aren’t you?”

“Yup,” Tony said.

“Cliche.”

“Tony Stark.”

Stephen chuckled and acknowledged a game well-played.

Tony said, “I think the Asgardians are trying to steal our kid.” 

Stephen’s heart burned and broke at the same time. He closed his eyes for a heartbeat longer than a blink. Tony still had no idea what he was implying when he said that. He took a deep breath and focused on Peter and the Cloak, both playing with the kitten.

“That son of a bitch really got me,” Tony muttered under his breath.

“Yes, it’s not wise to challenge my brother in a battle of wits,” Thor said. He seemed relaxed and content looking at Loki playing with the kitten and Peter. “I told you he would not harm a child.”

“Yeah, but he deliberately did that to make Peter like him,” Tony said.

“Yes,” Thor replied, still smiling. “He did do that.”

“You have to admit, it was well-played, Tony,” Stephen finally said. 

Tony glared at him, then scoffed. “I admit nothing. Please tell me he’s not going to pull any of this when Rogers and company get here.”

“We spoke at length about the meeting today,” Thor said. “I swear to you, my brother and I will be on your side.”

Stephen hoped Thor was right and any chaos from Loki would be in their favor. 

Something red appeared out of the corner of his eye. Looking up, Stephen watched Pepper Potts walk into the room, looking just as lovely and poised as he’d last seen her. 

“Pep!” Tony said.

“Hi, Tony. Stephen, it’s so good to see you. Thor, I hope you’re settling in nicely,” she said. 

Stephen glanced over at Loki, but he was either too distracted by Peter and his kitten or he was wisely not interacting with Pepper. Probably the latter. 

“I am, yes, thank you,” Thor said, then accidentally kicked the dining room table, making all the boxes and plates shift. He awkwardly caught a few of them, then smiled at Pepper again.

She grinned, then turned to Tony. “I just came by to say, you’ve got this. If any of them gives you a problem, you let me know.”

“Ms. Potts, no one in their right mind would try to pickle you,” Tony said, embracing her and twirling her around in a circle. 

Just looking at them made Stephen smile. 

_See? Look how Tony cares for his friends!_

He swallowed down the sudden rush of guilt he felt at wanting more and forced himself back to the moment. 

“Stephen, you take care of him,” she said, playfully harsh.

“What do you think I’ve been doing?” Stephen asked.

“I knew I liked you,” she said, patting his arm. “Oh, May! How have you been?” 

Distracted, Pepper walked over to Bruce and May. Thor, Stephen, and Tony watched her go.

“Isn’t she amazing?” Tony asked.

“Yes,” Stephen and Thor said at the same time.

“I, uh, wanted to ask you about that, Stark,” Thor said, rubbing a hand over his head. “I was wondering, if, well…” He looked between Tony and Stephen, then back to Tony again. “Well, you are no longer in a relationship with Pepper, correct?”

“Uh…” Tony said, looking between Stephen and Thor. “No, we broke up a while ago. Totally amicable, still friends. Look how mature I am. Why?” 

His eyes narrowed as he took in Thor’s red face. Stephen leaned closer as well, sensing what was coming.

“I was just wondering… Well, if you’re no longer involved with Pepper, would you, um, maybe would you mind if I called upon her?”

_Elation_

_Eagerness_

_Anticipation_

Tony put a hand over his mouth and quickly looked at Stephen, eyes completely wide. 

“No!” Tony said, a little too loudly. “Not at all. Thor. Buddy. Please, don’t let me stop you from…calling upon her.”

An enormous weight seemed to fall off Thor’s shoulders, and he exhaled. “Thank you, Stark. I promise you, if she agrees, I will treat her like the amazing woman she is.”

“I have no doubt, Thor,” Tony said, fighting a smile. The smile he seemed to be fighting was so large, he looked pained. “She’s allergic to strawberries.”

Thor nodded and said, “I have no idea what those are, but they are not welcome in New Asgard.” 

“Uh huh,” Tony said, grabbing Stephen by the elbow. “Hey, I think Loki’s calling you.”

“Brother?” Thor asked, walking towards Peter and Loki.

“Well, that was very cute,” Stephen said, to an almost hyperventilating Tony.

“Shh!” Tony shushed, though he was making more noise than Stephen. “Come with me.”

He manhandled Stephen by the shoulders across the room when there was no need, putting them between Pepper and May. Really, Stephen would have just gone with Tony, he didn’t need to pull him so urgently. 

“Tony…” Stephen started to say before he was shushed. 

“Pepper! I need to talk to you!” Tony said, nowhere near subtle. “Sorry, May.”

“Tony, what is it?” Pepper asked, obviously concerned. “Are you okay?”

Tony bounced on the balls of his feet, and Stephen rolled his eyes. “Thor’s gonna ask you out.”

Pepper’s eyes went wide. She looked at Tony for a moment like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Then she repeated the same look at Stephen.

“Shut the fuck up,” she said softly.

Stephen feigned shock. “Miss Potts!”

“Yeah, Miss Potts, excited much?” Tony asked, his eyes wide and smile broad.

The entire ordeal was beginning to border on the absurd. 

“No, seriously,” Tony said. “He just came over and did the bro code thing, and I told him it was fine.”

“Bro code thing?” she asked.

“He asked Tony if it was really over between you two, and if he could ask you out,” Stephen said. Everyone knew the bro code.

“Yeah, bro code,” Tony said. “Pepper, you have to tell me what dating Thor is like.”

“What?” Stephen asked while Pepper gave him a sly look.

“He’s a god-king of an ancient warrior culture and wears a cape,” Tony said.

“Hey!” Stephen shouted. “Rude.”

“Sorry, Doc. But, seriously, Pep,” Tony said, then shook her a bit. “What’s he going to do to ask you out? Kill an elk and roast it on your doorstep? I just have a hard time imagining he’s going to bring you flowers and chocolate.”

Stephen rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, I don’t know if I want to share,” Pepper said.

He glared at Stephen. “Don’t pretend to be above it. You want to know if he finds the last Yeti and makes her a coat, too.”

Stephen met his glare for a moment, before considering. “Yeah, alright.”

“Pep…” Tony pleaded one more time.

“Fine,” Pepper said, patting Tony lightly on the face. “But only because Stephen wants to know, too.”

“Yay,” Tony said as softly as he probably could while this excited.

“You’re ridiculous,” Pepper said, then checked her watch. “It’s getting late. I better go.” She kissed Tony’s cheek and then Stephen’s. “You’ll do great. Both of you.”

“I’d better get going, too,” May said. “Peter’s good to spend the night, right?” she asked Tony.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Tony said. “It’ll be one big slumber party.” 

Yeah, one big slumber party. Complete with two Norse gods, and one super soldier who’d once left Tony in Siberia with a busted suit. 

Pepper and May left, and Tony’s body visibly slumped. He looked exhausted and it was 11 AM.

“Did you get enough sleep?” Stephen asked. He made his way back to the dining room table, thinking Tony might join him and sit down.

“Never do,” Tony said, and sure enough he sank into the chair next to Stephen’s. “How about you?”

“I was cold all night,” Stephen said. “I don’t know what you and the Cloak were doing last night, but it came to bed stinking like ten loads of overly-perfumed laundry.”

Tony laughed and put his face in his hands, his elbows on the table. 

One hour.

“They’re setting up lunch,” Tony said through his hands. “In the main conference room. They’ll get there, read over their contracts, then we’ll go in and greet them.” Groaning, Tony rubbed his hands over his face and sank deeper in his chair. “I want this to be in and out. ‘Hey, welcome back, everyone, work together blah blah,’ and then we can just go about our business.” He finally looked up from his hands and met Stephen’s eyes. “Something tells me that’s not going to happen.”

Stephen doubted it, but resolved to be optimistic for Tony’s sake. “It could happen. They’ve been on the run. Maybe they’re tired.”

Tony barked out a laugh.

“Stark,” Thor said, sitting down at the table. “Take heart. I still don’t understand how the bonds between the Avengers could have turned so sour, but I will try my best to mend them.”

Loki slid a chair out and slowly lowered himself into it.

“How about you, Snowflake?” Tony asked.

“Oh, yes,” Stephen said, elated at the nickname. “That’s perfect for you, Loki.”

Slowly, Loki tilted his head and a smile appeared on his face. Stephen had a feeling Tony was going to really regret that nickname.

“Peter?” Loki said to Peter, who was still playing with his kitten. “Would you like to build a snowman?”

“Uh, what?” Tony said. Stephen had a feeling where this was going.

“It’s fall, Mr. Loki,” Peter said, holding his kitten to his chest. “It doesn’t snow here in the fall.”

“Yes, but what if I could make it snow _inside_?”

“No!” Tony shouted. 

Loki smiled and appeared to let the matter drop, but Stephen was still suspicious. 

“He reminds me of you, when you were a boy,” Loki said to Thor, a quick gesture to Peter. “Only far less arrogant.”

Thor laughed and looked over. “Were we ever that young?” he asked.

“You were,” Loki replied. They were all silent for a moment.

The sound of an engine burst broke through it. The Cloak came to Stephen’s shoulders as everyone stood.

_Fear_

_Anxiety_

_Despair_

“Friday?” Tony said.

“A small plane has landed on the tarmac.”

“Shit. They’re early,” Tony said. He didn’t even try to hide the sudden look of terror on his face, how his hands were shaking, or how his breathing sped up.

“Stark, it will be fine,” Thor repeated. “The sons of Odin stand by you.” He gave a pointed look to Loki who remained still, neither confirming nor denying.

“Mr. Stark?” 

A little ball of orange fluff was extended to Tony. “You want to hold Flapjack? He’ll make you feel better.”

Knowing Peter was trying to help, but also knowing a kitten wouldn’t really work for Tony, Stephen smiled and put himself between them. 

“Give us a moment, please,” he said to everyone.

Stephen pulled Tony into one of the hallways. His breathing was deliberately deep and there was already sweat on his face.

“Tony,” he said, then waited until Tony looked at him. “Do not squeeze.”

He gestured for the Cloak to remove one glove and took Tony’s hand in his. He felt a full body shudder through Tony’s hand as he forcibly did not grip Stephen’s. He just allowed Stephen’s touch, allowed it to center him and help him focus.

“Breathe,” Stephen said, already feeling Tony calm. “Better?” 

Tony nodded, his shoulders falling and his eyes closed. “Better. Thanks, Doc.” His hand tensed again, like he wanted to give Stephen’s a squeeze but didn’t. He looked down at their joined hands and let go.

Stephen’s hand was suddenly far colder than he wanted it to be.

“It really will be okay, Tony. I won’t leave your side,” Stephen said, then used his gloved hand to make sure the amulet was under Tony’s shirt. It was. “I promise.”

Tony’s other hand made a fist, like he was wanting to touch but stopped himself. Stephen’s heart felt like it would burst, like the strength of Tony’s restraint would break through his carefully constructed walls and he’d be buried under his lies.

Oh, how he wanted Tony.

The Cloak pulled off his other glove. 

_Damn matching making Cloak._

Stephen slowly extended his hand, palm up, and let Tony gently lay his hand over it. The small smile that graced Tony’s face sent a thrill through Stephen, and everything else melted away.

Until he heard a soft meow.

Turning around quickly, Stephen saw Peter smiling at the two of them, furry little kitten having given him away. It seemed to take him a minute to realize he’d been caught spying.

Slowly, Tony took his hands away. “Kid…” he started before Peter cut him off.

“Sorry!” Peter said, putting his kitten in-between Tony and himself. “So sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt, I was just worried. Are you okay, Mr. Stark?”

“Yeah, kid,” Tony said. “Fine. You ready?” he asked Stephen.

“Once more into the breach,” Stephen said, turning towards the common area. 

“We miserable few,” Tony said, leading Stephen by the shoulder. Walking like a man headed to the gallows, he sighed and said, “Right. Let’s go.”

*

If Tony had been facing a death sentence, walking with him to the conference room felt like Stephen was leading him towards the chair. Outwardly, Tony had managed to force his expression into something resembling casual disdain, and his body language looked a little too relaxed. 

It was far more than Stephen had hoped for. He had no issue walking a few steps behind Tony and Thor, allowing the two who’d been on the team at its founding to lead the way into this joyless reunion. 

Rhodey, Bruce, Peter, Loki and himself all followed close behind. All whispered words of encouragement had been said in the common area. Now was the time for steely resolve and a fulfillment of Stephen’s promise.

He wouldn’t let Tony get more than a foot away from him. It made him quick on his feet.

They approached a room surrounded by clear glass walls. Inside, they saw a table covered with paperwork, Starkpads, and takeout boxes. 

Natasha Romanoff saw them first, the others looking up a split second later. Tony’s steps didn’t falter for a moment as he walked up to the door that opened for him automatically.

Steve Rogers, Wanda Maximoff, Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, the Vision, and Scott Lang all stood up as they entered the room.

_There was silence in heaven for a half an hour._

Steve Rogers broke it. 

“It’s good to see you, Tony. Rhodey, Thor, Bruce.” He looked towards Peter, who was in his suit, mask on. “Queens.”

“I didn’t believe them,” Clint said, perched on a chair. There were sandwiches and pizza and sushi—all foods easily picked up, Stephen noted—along the long table, where Clint sat at the end. He jutted his chin at Loki. “When they said they’d recruited Loki. I didn’t believe it was possible. Not after New York.”

For all his supposed naivety, Thor seemed to read the room quickly. He gave a forced smile. “Yes, my brother is well again. He was ill for some time, but he’s agreed to join the Avengers and atone for his crimes. He remains a prince of Asgard, and has agreed to help rule my people.” Stephen heard the, _”and he is under my protection_ ” that Thor didn’t say loud and clear.

Maximoff was looking between him and Tony, like she was trying to solve a puzzle.

_Damn it._

Loki and Thor had figured it out quickly, but they were gods who had used magic for a thousand years. From what Stephen understood of Maximoff, she was mostly self-taught and had only a few years under her belt.

Which would have been technically more than Stephen...if he hadn’t cheated with the Time Stone.

“Why don’t we all sit down and get something to eat before we start discussing anything?” Bruce said, taking the lead and breaking from the group and grabbing a chair. “Maybe catch up a little?” He pulled over a box of pizza and started loading his plate, like there was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary going on.

The suggestion distracted Maximoff, to Stephen’s relief. The rest of them slowly sat down, but no one else started eating.

Except Loki.

Loki dug into each of the boxes with unbridled enthusiasm. Tiny sandwiches, several slices of pizza, and an entire sushi roll were quickly consumed while he hummed in satisfaction.

Stephen really had to hand it to him. He really was the god mischief.

“How was the flight?” Tony asked after a few minutes of everyone staring at each other.

“Good,” Rogers said. He looked over at Stephen, and seemed surprised by the look of absolute disdain Stephen was giving him. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

“You’d have remembered if we had,” Stephen said, straight faced and monotone.

“This is Doctor Stephen Strange,” Tony said, finally picking up a slice of pizza. “He’s a master of the mystic arts. He fought with Spiderman and me on Titan against the big purple asshole. Doc, I think you know everyone.”

“Hello,” Stephen said, an antithesis of a greeting.

“Here, Doc, have a roll,” Tony said, sliding a box over to Stephen. Loki’s eyes slid over his still-gloved hands but said nothing.

“I thought you’d be taller,” Natasha said before taking a bite of her sandwich. “But that’s probably because you were standing next to Tony. He’s barely taller than me.”

Casual friendly reference to something they probably always teased Tony about _and_ masking the intent to unsettle the both of them by bringing up the viral photo. Well done.

What she didn’t realize was that while Stephen might doubt himself, he wasn’t going to let anyone else do it for him.

“Yes, I’ll have to thank the photographer for getting my good side,” Stephen said.

“Your back?” she replied.

Tony snickered into his pizza as Romanoff walked into her own joke.

“That’s his best side, Natasha,” Tony said, proud to have one-upped her. Stephen allowed himself a false sly smile at Tony’s joke about his ass. There were worse fates than everyone knowing Tony found him attractive.

To her benefit, Natasha smiled genuinely. “I’ve missed you, Tony.”

_Anger_

_Grief_

_Betrayal_

Tony kept his face towards his plate while he pulled himself together. “I missed you too, Nat,” he said after a moment.

“So, master of the mystic arts, huh?” Lang said, food almost falling out of his mouth. “I got a few card tricks I could show you. I can give Wanda a run for her money.”

Wanda smiled and rolled her eyes at Lang. As far as Stephen could tell, Lang was a lovable fool, a grown-up version of Peter and therefore not a concern at the moment. 

But now Wanda Maximoff was looking straight at him. And that _was_ a concern.

“What kind of magic do you practice, Doctor Strange?” she asked.

Remembering the story they were giving to the world, and also the Rogues, Stephen simply said, “I channel magic from the universe.”

He looked up from his sushi roll to see Wanda was no longer listening. Wanda was again looking between Stephen and Tony with a curious look in her eye. 

“Is there something…something odd between you and Stark?” she asked, squinting between them as Thor and Loki had done before they discovered it. 

“Depends on your definition of the word,” Loki said, snorting. The rest of the room either grinned or glared at Loki for being insensitive, but Stephen silently thanked him. He’d much rather have the Rogues believe he and Tony were involved romantically than them knowing about the bond.

“No, really,” Wanda said, standing up and walking closer to them. “I don’t know what it is, but it’s…something.”

“Our super-secret friendship bracelets?” Tony said, standing up as she approached. His feet shuffled and Stephen could feel his fear as he fought the desire to back up at Wanda’s approach.

“Truly, Stark. What is that between you two?” she asked, and then Stephen saw red mist spring from Wanda’s hands and crawl into the space between her and Tony. Stephen threw back his chair and hastily made the signs to create a shield as he felt Tony panic. His hands burned at the quick, jerky movements, but he forced himself through it.

But before he could get there, the amulet around Tony’s neck created a Shield of Seraphim that clashed against Wanda’s red mist like a shield blocking a sword. 

Wanda immediately put her hands down and looked at the two of them, confused.

“What was that?” Rogers asked.

“A…shield of some sort. A shield against magic?” Wanda asked, seeming confused as to why Tony would have such an artifact on him. “Or just against my magic, Stark?”

“Don’t know. I found it in a Cracker Jack box,” Tony said, rubbing a hand over the amulet. Stephen stood like a silent sentinel at his side.

Silence stretched between them for a moment before it was broken by the sound of a chair sliding across the floor.

“Really, Tony?” Rogers said with such disappointment in his tone Stephen had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

There was a flash of light and Loki was no longer sitting in his chair as himself, but as Rogers.

“I’m so disappointed in you, Tony,” Loki said, in a farcical mimicry of Rogers. 

“I only wanted to see what it was,” Wanda said.

“Uh, you could ask?” Tony said.

“I did,” Wanda said. “You lied.”

An ugly, tense silence descended upon them like a blanket. More people around the room stood up as the tension grew. 

“Yeah, I don’t owe you anything. Especially not on my choice of jewelry,” Tony said.

“And, as Ms. Maximoff just demonstrated, it was clearly necessary,” Stephen said. He didn’t understand why Tony needed to justify anything.

“What did I tell you, Steve?” Clint said softly from the back. He didn’t have his bow out, but Stephen recognized a fight stance when he saw it.

“Some things are none of your business,” Tony finally said. “I don’t have to tell you everything. You don’t have to tell me everything. Some of us literally have that written in our contracts,” he said, pointing at the papers and Starkpads that were scattered around the table.

“No one’s saying you can’t have a secret, Tony,” Natasha said.

“It feels like that’s exactly what’s being said,” Stephen said from Tony’s side.

Rogers nodded. “We just don’t want another Ultron on our hands. After what happened last time—“

“Uh, what?” Tony said, his tone low and deadly. “What exactly do you mean by that?”

“Tony, come on,” Rogers said.

“No, really. Because I was there, and I think it was made pretty clear that Ultron was an accident.”

“An accident that wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t been playing with something you couldn’t handle,” Rogers said. He threw a glare at Loki, who was just sitting there in Roger’s form, smiling. “Look, no one wants to dig up the past. But if you’re keeping secrets like that again—“

“I’m not keeping secrets, Rogers,” Tony said, bluntly. “Not like that.”

“He’s not going to come clean, Steve,” Barton said. “All of this is a waste of time.”

“I’m sorry, aren’t you retired?” Tony asked. 

“Had to come and sign my paperwork, right?” Clint said, waving a folder around.

“Tony, please,” Rogers said again, and Stephen knew he was no longer capable of keeping the disgust off his face. This sanctimonious asshole stood there like he was judge and jury over some imagined crime Tony had committed.

Stephen clenched his fist and bit his lip through the pain.

“I got nothing for you, Steve,” Tony said again.

The silence that stretched this time was like an oppressive shroud that covered everyone in the room. The only ones still sitting were Lang and Loki, who had finally ended his illusion.

Rogers nodded sadly, like a judge who was asking a condemned man for a confession to save his life, only to be given a face full of spit. Stephen marveled at the audacity of Rogers to come into Tony’s compound and pass judgement on him. 

“T’Challa picked up an energy signature from the Compound,” Rogers said, like he was leading Tony to his end. “It’s consistent with the power of an Infinity Stone.”

_Panic_

“So when were you going to tell the world you have an Infinity Stone, Tony?” Rogers asked.

Neither Stephen nor Tony moved. They both knew Tony still had the Power Stone locked away in the deepest basement of the Compound. Clearly, that wasn’t enough to completely mask the signature. Stephen also knew that Tony had wanted to get as many stones off of Earth as possible, but had only successfully managed to get rid of two.

The Time Stone was still with him, Space was with Loki, Mind was with Vision, and Power was somewhere in a lockbox.

Stephen almost wished he’d brought the Time Stone, if only to throw them off.

“Brother,” Thor said suddenly, breaking the silence.

“Hmm?” Loki said, picking up another slice of pizza.

“Enough, brother. Stark is your teammate now. Show them,” Thor said. It took every last reserve of self-control Stephen had, but he managed not to sigh in relief when he realized what Thor was doing. He would personally curse anyone who ever implied Thor was a glorified meathead in his presence. This man clearly understood statecraft in way Stephen never would.

Perhaps he shouldn’t be so surprised. He did grow up around Loki.

“Oh, very well,” Loki said, and then opened up a window into the pocket dimension where he kept the Space Stone. It wasn’t in their universe, so it wouldn’t be traceable. 

But the Rogues didn’t know that.

“Satisfied?” Loki said, then closed the window and picked up his pizza again. 

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Barton said, finally kicking his chair away and approaching Loki quickly. Rogers held him back with an arm across his chest.

“You let him keep it?” Rogers shouted at Tony.

“How is this still on Tony?” Stephen asked. 

“You have no idea what we went through just to get that thing away from him the first time, Strange,” Barton said, visibly struggling against Rogers. “You weren’t there.”

“Oh yes, I was,” Stephen snapped back. “The ‘Doctor’ part isn’t an arbitrary title. I was in surgery for twenty-four hours straight when Loki attached New York.” He forced his fists to unclench and winced. Tony broke the stare he was giving Rogers, stealing a quick glance at him in concern. “But you haven’t said a word about Loki, Rogers. You’re still hell-bent on blaming Tony.”

“Why didn’t you take it from him?” Rogers asked Tony, like Stephen had said _nothing_.

“Ha!” Tony shouted. “Maybe because I’d have to go through Thor first? Or because he hasn’t done anything with it. Or because as soon as he faces The Hague he’ll be given refugee _and_ diplomat status. Take your pick!”

“If you want to take it from me, Captain,” Loki said with a devilish grin, “you’re welcome to try.”

“We just got back and it’s all secrets and lies,” Clint said, removing himself from Roger’s grip and going back to his chair.

“You guys just got in,” Rhodey said, coming up behind Stephen and Tony. “I don’t see how it’s even possible for Tony to have told you anything yet.”

“Yeah, come on guys,” Lang said. “He’s hardly responsible for _Loki_.”

“Just tell me how you really feel, Steve,” Tony said, closing the small distance that remained between himself and Rogers. Stephen inched forward, staying by Tony’s side. “And if you don’t trust me, then why did you come back here?”

“Try and see this from my side, Tony,” Rogers said. “Think about how this looks. We don’t even know what really happened on Titan.”

“What?” Stephen said.

“What did you do on Titan?” Rogers asked. “How did you defeat Thanos? All intelligence on this guy had him being indestructible. He even beat Thor in a fight. But you two come out on top?”

“What are you implying, Cap?” Tony asked, stone-faced.

“I’m not implying anything, I’m asking you a question and you’re not answering.”

“Magic and nanotech!” Peter said from behind them. That was what was in the official report, and it was the truth. “I was there, too. That’s how they beat him.”

“It’s okay, Spiderman. It doesn’t matter what anyone says,” Tony said, getting in Roger’s face. “Cap just doesn’t trust me.”

Rogers looked Tony in the eye and said, “I don’t understand how anyone could trust you.”

Heat engulfed Stephen and the room seemed to narrow in his rage. He held Rhodey back, not even having time to wince, then pulled Tony out of the way.

Then he punched Steve Rogers in the jaw.

Pain lanced through his hand like it was on fire. He couldn’t help the cry of pain he bellowed, Tony immediately trying to get him out of the line of fire.

Through eyes closed with pain, Stephen saw red mist form and then a blue shield. 

“I think that’s quite enough for now,” he heard Loki say. “Perhaps we can try this again another day.”

And with that, Tony and Bruce whisked Stephen out of the room.

“Doc, are you okay?” Tony asked him, hands on his shoulders as though trying to steady him. Stephen hadn’t even realized he was in danger of falling over. “Stephen, you with me?”

Stephen managed a pained grunt with some effort.

“Let’s get to the med bay,” Bruce said. “I want to make sure there’s no damage.”

“Red, buddy, maybe help him?” Tony asked.

Stephen felt himself lift a few inches off the ground. “I can walk.”

“This will be faster,” Tony said. Stephen felt them going faster than a walk, and he could hear the pounding of feet from Tony and Bruce.

And through the pain, he could feel something coming from Tony. Something different, something new. 

Another spasm hit him and all thoughts of whatever Tony was feeling were cast aside.

After an age and a half, they finally arrived at the med bay. Stephen was guided onto a bed, and the Cloak removed his gloves so Friday could scan his hand.

The pain was just barely starting to fade.

“Here,” Bruce said, coming to Stephen with an injection.

Stephen shook his head. “No.” Tony put his hand around his left wrist and gave him a gentle squeeze.

“It’s just an anti-inflammatory,” Bruce said.

Stephen looked for a lie in Bruce, but found none. “Yeah, okay,” Stephen said, then allowed Bruce to roll up his sleeve and give him the injection.

There was a stirring in Tony that Stephen could feel but was too distracted by the pain to identify. Whatever it was felt strong, and it felt like it was burning Tony from the inside out.

“What were you thinking, Doc?” Tony whispered.

“I wasn’t,” Stephen said. “If I had been thinking I would have opened up a portal and let Rogers fall for an hour.”

“To be fair, Steve did stumble back a few steps,” Bruce said, running another test. “And he crashed into a few chairs.”

“All that training at Kamar-Taj paid off,” Stephen said, amused. “I made Captain America stumble.”

The hand around his left wrist squeezed. “Why did you do that?” Tony asked. He felt like he was being torn apart on the inside, like a roaring fire was burning something away to make way for something new.

Stephen blinked. “I couldn’t stand to hear him say that about you when you’re the most trustworthy man I’ve ever met.”

Tony shook his head. “I don’t know how you could think that.”

Stephen checked that Bruce was out of earshot. “Tony, I trusted you with my soul,” Stephen whispered.

_Shock_

_Joy_

_Elation_

Stephen staggered a breath as he finally realized what had changed. The warm feeling of friendship and affection had grown into something different. Something soft and fragile. Something Stephen couldn’t believe.

Because it wasn’t possible.

“Is Doctor Dad okay?” he heard Peter ask from the doorway.

“He’ll be fine, Peter,” Bruce said. “Stephen, I want you to take these anti-inflammatories every six hours. And we need to get you a bandage to keep your hand steady.”

In a daze, Stephen barely noticed that the Cloak removed itself from his shoulders and became a long piece of cloth.

“Are you going to be able to help him more than a sports bandage?” Bruce asked the Cloak.

The Cloak, in bandage form, nodded, then proceeded to wrap itself around Stephen’s hand as gently as it could. A low heat penetrated his aching hand. 

“Thank you, my friend,” Stephen said, barely sparing a glance for Cloak. His eyes were on Tony.

“Thanks, Red.”

“I’m going to go back and make sure no one’s killing each other,” Bruce said. “Rest, please?”

Stephen nodded. Tony sat next to him on the bed and put an arm around his waist, and another wrapped around his left wrist again.

“You okay?” Tony asked.

Tony was asking him about the pain, but Stephen could hardly think about that. All he could concentrate on was the feeling coming from Tony. 

It couldn’t possibly be true. Tony didn’t feel that way about him. They were friends, it was enough…

What had been soft and fragile was growing into a wave that threatened to drown Stephen in its intensity.

“Stephen,” Tony said, and lifted a hand to Stephen’s shoulder. “Thank you for what you did down there. You hurt yourself…for me.”

“I…really didn’t mean to do that. It was instinctive.”

“Yeah, I know. Someone insulted me and it was a knee-jerk reaction to defend me.”

For a moment Stephen thought maybe Tony was going to make a joke out of it all, talk about Stephen wanting to be a knight in shining armor as if Tony was the fair maiden.

_Love_

“You’re the first person to defend me like that. Even Rhodey…” Tony moved his hand to Stephen’s face, then slowly turned his cheek so he was facing Tony.

It hurt to look at him. Looking into Tony’s face was like looking into the endless night sky. The intensity of Tony’s love was threatening to drown Stephen. He felt his eyes well with tears.

He couldn’t deny what Tony was feeling for him. Not anymore.

“No one’s ever done that for me,” Tony whispered.

Stephen gulped and shook his head. “Then they were fools.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, and Stephen felt his heart surge. “And so was I.”

And then Tony closed the distance between them and kissed him.


	13. The Shield

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for betaing this chapter even after I said I was taking a week off and then was a big fat fucking liar.
> 
> So I did try to take a week off, but a few of you were disturbed by the cliffhanger. I guess I hadn't thought of the last chapter as a cliffhanger, because my notes said it wasn't. But as I was writing the outline for this chapter, I realized that Stephen had grown a little differently on paper than he had in my head when I'd first outlined this. 
> 
> So I had to get the chapter out. It needed to be written as soon as possible.
> 
> But now I'm actually taking a break. I've only just begun writing the next chapter, and it's from the Cloak's POV for the most part. 
> 
> And thank you to everyone who left a comment! I was overwhelmed and so happy to see such a positive response. I've never had this kind of feedback on anything I've written before. Thank you all so much.

Tony was kissing him.

Stephen gasped into the kiss and shuddered through a broken inhale. It was almost chaste, just a firm press of Tony’s lips against his. That didn’t stop Stephen’s heart from racing or his body from shaking. Tony pulled away an inch, just an inch, and Stephen’s breath hitched. Then he felt Tony’s smile around his lips before he kissed Stephen again.

Then it hit him.

Tony was _kissing_ him.

Slow and unhurried, Tony kissed him, his arms coming to wrap around Stephen’s body in a firm hold. It was everything Stephen had ever wanted, while still promising more. 

After a moment, Tony broke the kiss and took a deep breath. Then he smiled and laughed like he was exhaling after the world’s longest ‘hello.’ He put his forehead against Stephen’s and closed his eyes. He’d never seen Tony smile like that before.

The world tilted on its axis and Stephen wrapped his arms around Tony, his left hand gripping Tony’s suit jacket while his right remained stubbornly stationary.

And then the flair of agony hit him.

He cried out in pain, and reality came crashing down around him.

_Tony was kissing him._

“Damn,” Tony whispered, careful to not move too quickly and risk knocking Stephen’s hands even more. He slowly backed up, the sweet, playful smile gone.

Clutching his hands close to his chest, Stephen concentrated on his breathing and shut his eyes. He was almost glad he could blame his panic on the pain and not on the fact that Tony had just kissed him.

That Tony loved him.

“Stephen?” Tony asked, putting a hand on his knee. “You alright?” 

This couldn’t be happening. There was no way Tony knew what he was doing, what he was getting himself into. All of this was because Stephen had defended him to Steve Rogers, and because Tony valued loyalty above all else. It wasn’t real. 

It couldn’t be.

He looked down the road where he allowed himself to believe Tony could love him. All he could see was heartache. 

“Hey, Stephen,” Tony said, putting his hand on Stephen’s cheek again. “Talk to me, please? You’re kinda freaking me out here. Did I go too fast? If I did, I’m sorry.”

Stephen shook his head, dislodging Tony’s hand. No, Tony hadn’t misread him. He’d wanted Tony to kiss him. He’d been wanting Tony to kiss him for months now. But now they were here, and Stephen knew none of this was real. How could it be?

“Is it your hands? Are they worse?” Tony asked. He took his hand off Stephen’s knee. “Do you want me to call Bruce?”

Stephen shook his head again. His hands were still cradled to his chest, eyes down to the ground.

“Stephen, I know something is very wrong, but I don’t know what it is. Please, tell me what’s wrong,” Tony pleaded.

“I’m fine,” Stephen gasped out, his voice hoarse from trying to keep ahold of himself, from not completely falling apart right in front of Tony. “Everything’s fine.”

Stephen could feel the weight of Tony’s quiet stare. He buried his face deeper into his chest.

“Stephen, baby, please.” Tony’s voice came out as a harsh whisper.

The endearment was like a knife between his ribs. “Nothing,” he said in a harsh whisper. “Nothing’s wrong.”

“Then why are you crying?”

It was an instinctive reaction, putting his right hand to his face to see if Tony was right. The Cloak unbound a small part of itself and helped to dry Stephen’s tears.

It was the last straw. He just couldn’t take this amount of kindness. It was impossible, how could he possibly be expected to just accept that Tony Stark loved him? That he was in any way worthy of any of this? 

It wasn’t possible. It wasn’t, it wasn’t, it wasn’t…

“Stephen,” Tony said, hands out like he was ready to catch Stephen if he fell. “ _Please_ try to calm down.”

Stephen shook his head and he could feel the tears running down his face now. “You don’t understand.”

“Okay,” Tony said, sitting back on the bed. “Sit here and tell me what I don’t understand. I’ll even sit way over here on the other side if you want.”

“No.” Stephen shook his head again. “That’s not what I mean. You don’t understand what you’re doing. You can’t possibly feel…the way you think you do.”

_Despair_

_Grief_

_Anger_

“Yeah,” Tony whispered. “That’s where you’re wrong, Doc. I _didn’t_ know. As in past tense. I knew we were friends, and I knew I was open to seeing where it would go, but I didn’t _know_ until now.” Tony’s eyes welled, and his face twisted in grief. “So please don’t tell me…that I don’t love you. Because I do. Love you.”

Actually hearing the words made it ten times worse, made it real in a way it hadn’t been a moment before. He could barely breathe through the tears.

“I can’t possibly be what you want,” Stephen sobbed.

Tony’s face twisted, and the first tear fell. “Damn it, Doc.” He wiped away his tears and stomped a foot on the floor, grounding himself. “You haven’t felt this awful since Titan.”

“Tony…”

“What more could I possibly want?” He reached out to take Stephen’s hands but stopped himself. “Stephen, you have a piece of my soul wrapped around yours. You’re a sorcerer who made me a pretty necklace to defend me against mind control, you joined the Avengers when you didn’t have to, you put up with all of my bullshit, and _we’re on each other’s team_. Do you understand what that means to me?”

Stephen wanted to fall into a hole and let the Cloak drape itself over him until he passed out. He wanted this day to be over, he wanted Tony to stop saying these pretty lies because he knew he would eventually believe them.

“I waited until I was absolutely sure,” Tony said, slowly approaching Stephen on the bed. “I did that because I didn’t want to hurt you, but damn it Stephen I’ve wanted you for a while now. You’re beautiful and you’re strong and you’re mine.”

Stephen shook his head. On his hand, the Cloak gave him a gentle squeeze that felt like a reprimand.

He ignored it. “How can you possibly be sure?” He was digging for a reason, he knew he was. For some thread to unravel, something to show Tony how wrong he was. This isn’t what he was meant for, this kind of life wasn’t for him. He suffered through fourteen millions futures, suffered through the knowledge that Tony would never love him back, and he’d _accepted_ it. What Tony was saying now was impossible.

“It was the heat of the moment,” he said suddenly, nodding to himself. That made complete sense. “I defended you, and you had an emotional response. It happens sometimes, especially if we’re considering your background, and it’s fine. It doesn’t have to ruin—”

Tony put a hand on his arm, stopping his reasoning in its tracks.

“Because I’m yours, too,” Tony said. “I’m with you, Stephen.”

Stephen struggled to get to his feet, but the pain and the panic made him dizzy.

“Stephen, baby, please,” Tony said, holding out a hand at a distance. “Please sit down. You’re going to hurt yourself.”

Just then, with Stephen swooning and Tony trying to calm him down, the door to the med bay opened.

Peter walked in.

“Doctor Dad, I brought you—“

Peter stopped as soon as he took a good look at Stephen. He could imagine the picture he made: shaking, face red and covered in tears, probably looking like a frightened animal. With a plate in one hand, Peter shifted his body into a defensive stance. He probably didn’t even realize he was doing it.

“What happened?” Peter asked. 

“Stephen, please,” Tony pleaded. 

On shaking legs, Stephen fled. He walked as quickly as he could past Peter, out the door. Through a haze, he heard Tony tell Peter to follow him, to not let him out of his sight. A moment later, Stephen heard soft footsteps behind him, but he didn’t stop until he found a terrace. Using magic to open the door, he stepped out into the afternoon sun.

The day had no business being this beautiful. The sun was shining through sparse clouds, and a light breeze blew through Stephen’s hair. On the ground he noticed some honeysuckle bordering the Compound, and squinted at the movement he caught.

His butterflies. They were bright blue, shimmered with magic, and were utterly unmistakable. They were ones he’d made that day when he’d cast the protection spell on the Compound.

Tony had given them a home.

Sinking down into a chair, he tried to catch his breath, tried to get himself under control. He used every trick he knew to just astral project out of his shaking, useless body, but nothing worked. 

The sound of the door opening and closing broke the silence, then Peter sat down next to him. All he wanted was to be alone, but he didn’t have the strength to turn Peter away. 

“Are you okay?” Peter asked, breaking the silence.

Stephen hadn’t wept like that since he’d been a child, since Donna had died. Not even when he’d woken up after the accident to discover the life he’d worked so hard for was over. His breaths still came out in gasps, and he knew he looked as bad as he felt. He took a deep breath and tried to calm down for Peter’s sake.

“I’m fine,” he said but knew Peter didn’t believe him.

Peter fidgeted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable. He half-heartedly offered the sandwich to Stephen.

“I brought you lunch. I wasn’t sure if you would be hungry after…what happened.”

Not trusting his voice, Stephen shook his head again.

“Okay,” Peter said, putting the plate on his knee. He shifted in his seat and bounced the plate on one knee. A part of Stephen wanted to bark at him to stop, but his better side knew Peter had had an eventful and frightening afternoon and that the jitters were a normal reaction. Also, he doubted he could ever raise his voice to Peter.

That didn’t stop him from feeling more exhausted just by looking at him.

“Doctor Strange,” Peter said a few moments later. The use of his real name and not ‘Doctor Wizard’ or ‘Doctor Dad’ just enforced the fact that this wasn’t a normal conversation. “Did Mr. Stark…do something wrong?”

Stephen’s eyes slid closed and he couldn’t stop another tear from escaping. He just loved Peter so much.

“No,” he croaked. “He didn’t do anything wrong, Peter.”

The tension in Peter’s shoulders left him and he slumped over. The sandwich was almost a casualty, but was saved at the last moment. “Oh, good. I had no idea what I would do if he had.”

A grin fought its way to Stephen’s face. “Don’t worry, no one’s going to make you choose.” Besides, Stephen knew he would lose that battle. There was no way Peter would choose him over Tony if all this went south.

That thought added another layer to his grief. What if this meant he’d lost everything he’d gained?

“Well, Mr. Stark’s a good person, so I was pretty sure it wouldn’t come to that,” Peter said, studying the sandwich. “It was more that I thought I was going to have to be like Captain America in those stupid videos.”

The mention of Captain America wasn’t enough to distract Stephen from the fact that Peter had just implied he’d take his side over Tony’s if Tony had been hurtful to Stephen. Peter had said it so offhandedly, like he wasn’t saying something monumental. Something Stephen could barely comprehend.

Then he processed the other thing he’d said.

“I’m sorry, what about Captain America?”

“You know, those dumb PSA type things?” He turned to Stephen, spread his legs and put an elbow on the knee that wasn’t holding the plate. “So, you had a fight with your doctor wizard.”

The conversation was helping Stephen to get his breathing under control, but he still couldn’t make sense of what Peter was saying.

“Here, I’ll show you,” he finally said, pulling out his phone.

So they sat for a few minutes, watching the man Stephen had just punched in the face make the most stupid and embarrassing videos had ever seen.

Then, just to be petty, they watched them again.

*

Tony slumped onto the bed as Stephen ran out the door, Peter hot on his tail. 

“You okay, boss?” Friday asked, her tone far more concerned than he’d heard before.

Tony rubbed a hand over his face, then through his hair. 

“No,” he said. He had no idea what had gone so wrong so quickly. Stephen was in love with him. He’d known that since Titan. They’d discussed it _openly_ , for fuck sake. And now Tony was finally on the same page, but it didn’t matter.

Because Stephen didn’t believe him. 

But that didn’t make any sense.

Stephen had to know that Tony’s feelings had changed. He could feel Tony the way Tony felt him. There hadn’t been any kind of practice or training required. They’d bonded on Titan and the next thing Tony knew, he could feel Stephen’s love for him as plain as day. Stephen had to know his feelings were real. How could he possibly deny it?

The door to the med bay opened again.

“Stark,” Thor said, striding into the room with Loki behind him. “Now might not be a good time, but we have to discuss what’s to be done about the Power Stone.”

“Now I understand why you tried to convince me to give up the Space Stone,” Loki said. “Four Infinity Stones on Earth is a terrible idea.”

Tony buried his face in his hands. “I mean, yeah, even two stones is too many but also, you’re Loki.”

“All the more reason to entrust it to me,” Loki said, a false stone magically appearing in his hands. He tossed it up in the air, then caught it in a casual way he never would have treated the real stone. He looked around, then asked, “Where’s Strange? I’ve come to call him an idiot for not putting the Power Stone in a pocket dimension as soon as you got back.”

Tony grunted. “Yeah, guys, I don’t have time for this right now. I gotta…figure out how to help Stephen.”

Thor looked around. “Where is Strange? Bruce said he was resting after aggravating an old wound. I hadn’t realized his hands had been injured. It makes his strike against Rogers all the more valorous.”

“I think you mean all the more stupid,” Loki said.

Thor gave Loki a disapproving glare. “He defended his bondmate at great consequence to himself,” Thor said, then sighed. “He also helped end that terrible meeting, and for that he has my profound gratitude.” 

“Great. I’ll be sure to tell him when I see him,” Tony said, giving his face one last wipe. At this point, he couldn’t bring himself to care if Loki saw.

“Oh dear,” Loki said. “Lover’s quarrel?”

Tony let his silence speak for itself.

“Not now, brother” Thor said softly. He walked towards Tony’s bed and put a hand on his shoulder. “Stark. What happened? Is Strange in any danger?”

Maybe a danger to himself, Tony thought, especially in the mental state he was in now. Tony could feel Stephen’s grief, his pain, roll over him. Even on Titan, it hadn’t been this bad.

Although now that he thought about it…

“Friday, are any of Rogers’ team on this floor?”

“No, boss.”

Tony breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Lock it down. None of Rogers’ team gets to this floor. If there’s a medical emergency, alert me first so we can get Stephen somewhere else. I’m not letting them see him like this.”

“Like what?” Thor asked, shaking Tony a bit. “What happened?”

Tony laughed sadly and briefly considered confiding in Thor. “Yeah, you don’t want to know. Boring stuff. No big deal. We’ll figure it out.”

Loki seemed to perk up at the dodge, which did not seem like a good thing to Tony.

“Stark,” Thor said, leaning back and giving Tony some much-needed space. “When I said that my brother and I were on your side, I did not only mean in battle. I am your friend. Let me help you if I can.”

“Thor, leave him be,” Loki said, visibly annoyed at Thor's meddling. “It’s hardly a good idea to become involved in someone else’s…affairs.” 

“Hmm,” Tony grunted through his teeth. He had a lot of frustration to deal with, and Loki was making it _really_ hard to not take it out on him.

With a loud sigh, Thor turned away from Tony and addressed his brother. “Loki, you say that you are tired of running. That your place is with me and with our people.”

Loki lifted an eyebrow, looking unimpressed.

“I am also tired of running,” Thor said, his tone weary. “And I miss my friends. I’ve lost so many, then I thought I lost you.” He put his hands on his knees, a sad smile on his face. “But I found you. And Stark has given our people a new life, he’s given us hope. But he’s also opened his home to us in friendship. I will not squander an opportunity to return the kindness he’s shown to us.”

A cold stare was the only response Loki gave him for a moment, before he finally sighed and sat down on a nearby chair.

“So,” Thor said to Tony. “What happened? I will give counsel if you will receive it.”

“Thanks, buddy. I’m not sure how much your counsel is going to help, but yeah sure,” Tony said, throwing his hands up in the air. “Why not?” For a moment, he considered starting at the beginning, but Thor and Loki already knew so much of it. Eventually, he decided to just say what had happened.

“I told Stephen I loved him,” Tony said. “And he didn’t believe me.”

The silence was thick for a moment, and Tony swore if Loki laughed he was going to use the Power Stone to destroy him, ally or not. Thor gave him a sad, knowing look, then shared a quick glance at Loki. Loki lifted both eyebrows in question, before rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

“No,” Loki said.

“Brother…” Thor said.

“You are taking this debt too far, Thor. What next? Turning down their bed with mother’s quilts?”

“If need be, yes,” Thor said. “But not now. Now is the time for talking. Put that silver tongue of yours to good use for once.”

Loki rolled his eyes so hard they looked like they might fall out of his head.

“What do you think I was doing up there?” he said, pointing towards the conference room. Thor turned away from him, the conversation appearing to be over.

“Ugh, fine!” Loki said, then stormed out of the room.

“What just happened?” Tony asked. An annoyed Loki near an emotionally compromised Stephen seemed to spell disaster.

“Don’t worry, my brother will sort Strange out. Your bondmate is in good hands,” Thor said, patting Tony on the shoulder again.

“Um, what?” Tony asked. “No, wait. Loki’s hands? Stephen is going to be okay in _Loki’s_ hands? Like that time you thought they should fight it out and they ended up almost killing each other?”

“Yes,” Thor said slowly, like Tony was the one who was misunderstanding. “And now they’re working together. Loki hasn’t even tried to stab him once! Everything worked out then, everything will work out now.”

“Stab—what now?” Tony didn’t want a destroyed Stephen or a destroyed Compound so he started to scoot past Thor. “Yeah, I’m just gonna—“

“Sit,” Thor said, pushing Tony down on the bed. “Sit and listen to my counsel. You don’t have to accept it, but I would give it anyway.”

Fidgeting on the bed, feeling Stephen sink deeper and deeper into depression, Tony struggled to sit down and just listen to Thor. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to get out of this without hearing whatever speech Thor had prepared, so he attempted to relax into the flat, uncomfortable mattress.

“Thank you,” Thor said. He sat down, sadness dropped over him like a veil. Tony had never seen that look of desolation on Thor before. “When my brother first returned to us, he was full of piss and wind. He tried so hard to convince me that he hated me, I believed him. I believed he’d become the villain he presented to the world.”

Tony shrugged. “I mean, he did set an alien attack on New York, so.”

“Yes,” Thor said sadly. “He did. But for all his sins, he was still my brother. What he finally came to understand was that he did not have to be worthy of my love for me to love him. He was my brother, whether he was a villain or not.”

Tony fought the urge to tap his foot. “Okay, good story. Unconditional, brotherly love. Very nice. How does that have anything to do with Stephen and me?”

“You are bondmates. Stephen knows how you feel, but he can’t believe it, correct?”

Tony nodded.

“Well, ask yourself why. Why does he not believe you when the evidence is stated very clearly before him?”

Tony thought for a moment. 

Stephen was an intelligent, capable, powerful man. It hadn’t occurred to Tony that Stephen might feel unworthy of love because to him it was so obvious. Stephen was one of the most caring and lovable people he’d ever known. Maybe Stephen didn’t know that.

“Oh,” Tony said. 

Thor nodded solemnly. “Loki was the same way,” Thor said. “It took a very long time for him to stop running, to accept that he was worthy of love and forgiveness. That he could still have a place in our family. And through many trials, he found himself. He knows who he is now and who he is not. He is not a villain, but he is the god of mischief. Asgard is gone, but he is Asgard’s prince. And he is my brother.”

Thor stood and gave Tony one last pat on the shoulder. If it hadn’t been for the reinforced bed frame, Tony would have fallen to the ground.

“I think Strange may need a reminder of who he is, and what he is not. Then perhaps, make sure he knows where he belongs.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, more than a little surprised that Thor had actually given good advice. Although, considering how many times Thor had been right lately, maybe he shouldn’t be. “Thanks, buddy. I think maybe I should go…” He motioned towards where he imagined Stephen and Loki might be. 

“Good,” Thor said, then his shoulders fell. “I’m going to see if Bruce needs any assistance dealing with Rogers. When you described what had happened between the Avengers, I had a hard time believing it.”

“Yeah, me too,” Tony said. “And I was there.”

“Boss,” Friday said. “Captain Rogers is requesting access to this floor.”

“Um, access denied,” Tony said, his heart dropping to his knees.

“I’ve told him that several times. He’s insisting. He’s asking to speak with Doctor Strange.”

“Shit.” Tony paced around the room a few times, a dozen worst-case scenarios flooding his mind. Tony had Friday lock down the elevators and doors to the stairwells but if Rogers really wanted to come down, there would be little that could stop him. He could have Wilson or Maximoff fly him down, hell, he could probably shimmy down the drainpipes. 

“Yeah, okay I’m going up,” Tony said. His steps were quick and even. He schooled his face to what he liked to think of as ‘nonchalant annoyed.’ Loud, hard footsteps followed him. “You don’t have to come with me.”

“But I am,” Thor said, bringing up the rear. They took the elevator back up, to where Stephen had just knocked back an extremely surprised Steve Rogers. Tony had to stop himself from dwelling on the memory, instead tapping on the side of the nanoparticle casing. He absently wondered if he’d have to use it. The confrontation in the conference room had been heated but not violent. In theory, there’d be no need. But if Rogers was hellbent on getting to Stephen…

The doors to the elevator opened, and Tony’s steps faltered a moment. Because it wasn’t Rogers standing there, waiting to be let in. 

It was Natasha.

“Hi, Tony,” she said. Her smile was just slightly sad, and it matched the somber look in her eyes.

Perfectly.

“I managed to convince Steve it wasn’t the best idea to try to talk to the guy who wanted to punch him so badly he was willing to crush his own hand.” She crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side. A different kind of apprehension fell over Tony, but then Natasha was a very different kind of threat.

“Thor,” she said, when Tony remained silent. “How are you?”

To his credit, Thor smiled genuinely and said, “Every day is a little better. I’m glad to see you.”

“Me too,” she said. “I hate that it took something so huge to bring us all together again, but I’m glad to be back. This place always felt like home.”

The worst part of that statement was that Tony really wanted to believe that it was true, but he knew better than to believe a word she said. 

“Yeah, I’m glad you’re back,” he said a beat later. “If only to be the voice of reason.”

She smiled, a little bit bigger, a little happier. “Someone has to be.”

“Right, well,” he said, clapping his hands in front of him. “Friday said you wanted to speak with Stephen? He’s resting right now.”

Natasha squinted a bit, then nodded. “Of course. What exactly happened to…” she asked, gesturing to her hands.

It was too much. Now Tony really didn’t know what Natasha’s angle was. Anyone with a phone and access to the internet knew what happened to Stephen’s hands. Tony only held off looking it up out of respect for Stephen’s privacy. Natasha would have researched Stephen the moment she identified him in that video taken from the Village.

“Firecracker went off in his hand,” Tony said, straight-faced. “Completely messed him up. Other hand hurt itself out of solidarity.”

She smiled that same sly smile, and maybe she’d just wanted his reaction to that question. Maybe how he reacted was a test to see how well Stephen had adjusted to his disability. Maybe it was to see how big of a red button it was for Stephen. 

Or maybe not. Maybe it was just to distract Tony from something else entirely. He really had no idea. But he really hated having to watch his every word.

“Tony, the whole world knows what happened to his hands. What I meant to ask was, is he okay? Does a pin need to be reset or…?” she asked. 

She looked so concerned, but Tony also knew that Natasha always knew exactly the right questions to ask. The idea of her phasing a question wrong was unheard of.

“He’s fine,” Tony finally said. “Steve’s got a hard head so bad news for Stephen.”

Natasha nodded but the smile was gone. “Tony, I really am just concerned.”

“Why?” 

She looked sad for a moment before her face went blank again. She snuck a glance at Thor before saying, “Because he’s your boyfriend. And because we’re friends.”

It was only years of being in front of a camera that enabled Tony to not react to Natasha calling Stephen his boyfriend. He silently congratulated himself on his straight face.

She shifted her stance a bit. “Or at least we were. Not too long ago.” 

“Yeah,” Tony said, “a lot’s happened since then.”

Her bottom lip quivered for a moment. Tony was tempted to congratulate her for a wonderful performance but stopped himself in time.

“I’m sorry, Tony. About everything. But no one walked out of Germany blameless. Not me, not Steve, and not you. I know it’s gonna take time, but we have to put this past us. Or there was no point to coming back.”

“Yeah, what was the point of your coming back?” Tony asked. “Because so far the only thing that’s happened are insults and accusations.”

“And lunch,” she said. “You’re a sweetheart to get all that finger food.”

“You call that lunch?” Tony asked, exasperated. “Cause I call it an inquisition.”

“I didn’t have a bite to eat,” Thor finally said from behind Tony.

“Loki sure did,” Tony said.

“Yes, Loki has always had a very healthy appetite. It’s how we knew something was wrong when he returned home,” Thor said. “He wouldn’t eat for days.”

“Seems like he’s making up for lost time, big guy.”

“Tony,” Natasha said, and for the first time her voice was stern. “I can’t speak for Steve, but I want to move past this. I want to be a team again. I think everyone else feels the same way…for the most part.” She looked over at Thor. “Clint’s leaving. He’s retired, so it wasn’t really a surprise. But he won’t work with Loki.”

Thor nodded. “I’m not surprised. What my brother did to him was—“ He looked down to the floor, looking more cowed than Tony had ever seen him. “He has no reason to forgive him. And Loki has given him none.” He was quiet for a moment, then said, “Tony told me what happened between the Avengers after I left, but I had no idea it was this bad.”

“Yeah, buddy,” Tony said. “It’s this bad.”

“I will help mend it wherever I can,” Thor said.

“Thank you, Thor,” Natasha said.

“Yeah, I’ve got a sorcerer to check on, so was that it?” Tony asked.

He felt cruel saying it like he did, just laying the question out there like an accusation. He wanted to believe her so badly. But one of those knives in his back had been hers, and Tony’s stupid heart had already taken enough beating for today. 

Natasha’s betrayal had hit harder and deeper than Steve’s for so many reasons. There was a very foolish part of him that wanted to accept everything she was saying as gospel. That maybe the Avengers could be a real team again. That they could all have a second chance.

She nodded, and seemed to accept his brushoff. “The others just had some questions. We were reviewing Doctor Strange’s skill set and his origins, but the briefing doesn’t really go into much depth. Just that he was a neurosurgeon, then completely fell off the map, only popping up two years later when he was abducted from New York.” She smiled then said, “But all of that is public information. Even his described skill set is exactly what was in the videos from the abduction.”

An icy chill ran down Tony’s back. “Well, you have your answer.”

“Tony, there’s nothing shady going on here,” she insisted. “We just want to know who our new teammate is. We want to know who we’re working with. That doesn’t sound like too much, right? I think it’s a reasonable request.”

It was reasonable. Tony knew it was, but he also knew Stephen had reviewed his area of the briefing closely, careful to avoid any mention of his Order or their origins. And Tony wouldn’t betray Stephen's trust for anyone. 

Yeah, his stupid heart wanted to trust Natasha. And if it was just him, he might have chosen to believe her. 

But he wasn’t just speaking for him. He had to think of Stephen, too. And there was no way he would trust her with Stephen’s safety.

“Do you trust me?” he asked.

She paused and considered the question. “Yes,” she said a moment later.

“Well, I trust him. With my life.” He put his hands in his pockets, the only sign of trust he was willing to give her just then: putting away his most accessible weapon. “That’s got to be good enough for you right now.”

She looked at him for another moment, her face still that blank slate he never could see through. After a minute, she said, “Okay. I’ll tell the others you’re vouching for him. I don’t know what Steve will say.” 

She crossed her arms and looked to the ground. “He doesn’t want to say it, but he’s scared, Tony. He just wants to prevent what happened from happening again.”

“Well, if he’s that concerned about the Mind Stone, tell him to follow around the Vision. We can see how well he phases through walls,” Tony said.

Natasha lifted an eyebrow and nodded, conceding the point. “He’ll probably want to talk to Strange when he’s feeling better.”

Tony’s fingers skated along his amulet. “Well, he’s not gonna.”

Her eyes skimmed the amulet. “Okay, Tony,” she said. “I’ll tell him. But I really don't know how that’s gonna go over.”

“Well,” he said, slowly backing up towards the elevator. “I’ll let Stephen know your request. I think the new form to request a meeting with a sorcerer is the 227A. Maybe B? Not one hundred percent positive, but be sure to tell Steve to submit it in triplicate so I can make some paper footballs. Lab downtime hasn’t been the same since we went paperless.”

She smiled and said goodbye to him and Thor before the doors closed on the both of them.

Groaning through an exhale, Tony put his head in his hands and had to stop himself from melting to the floor.

“By the Norns,” Thor whispered. “What have I returned to?”

“Yeah, I’m sorry, buddy,” Tony said. He rested his head against the wall of the elevator.

“No, I am sorry you had to endure all of this alone.”

And Tony had been alone. Rhodey had been injured, he and Pepper had just broken up, Peter was a child, and Vision had been nursing his own broken heart.

But that was then.

He wasn’t alone anymore. And he wasn’t giving up on Stephen without a fight.

The doors opened and Tony stood there, terrified.

“Tony,” Thor said, then gave him a gentle shove. “Go to him.”

Tony nodded, and said, “Thanks, Thor.”

And then he ran.

*

After they’d watched the videos of Rogers making an ass out of himself, silence had fallen between Stephen and Peter again. 

Peter was still balancing the sandwich on his knee when Loki walked onto the terrace. 

“Um,” Peter said, glancing between Stephen and Loki. “Maybe now’s not the best time, Mr. Loki.”

“Oh?” Loki said with a false ignorance. “Did something happen?”

“Fuck off,” Stephen muttered under his breath, then shook his head at himself for swearing in front of Peter.

“Sadly, I can’t. I’d love to, but then Thor would make disappointed faces at me, and it becomes much more difficult to refrain from stabbing him.”

He sat down on a chair next to Peter and joined Stephen in looking out onto the lawn. 

Stephen felt hollowed out and exhausted. He didn’t have the strength to argue with Loki.

But it looked like Peter did. “I’m serious, Mr. Loki. I don’t think now’s a good time to…well, anything.”

Loki took one look at Peter, smiled, then took the sandwich off the plate. He ate it in three bites.

“Perhaps you should go get Strange another sandwich. He looks like he might need it.”

Peter shuffled his feet for a moment, looking like he absolutely did not want to leave Stephen alone, but also not knowing exactly how to say no to Loki.

“It’s fine, Peter,” Stephen finally said after a moment. He’d let Loki say whatever he wanted to say and then he could go back to figuring out how he was possibly going to handle this situation.

“I’ll be right back,” Peter said, then hurried out the door. Predictably, Loki waved a hand as soon as it shut, and Stephen heard the latch lock.

Then Loki leaned back in his chair and enjoyed the view with him. It would have been peaceful if Stephen wasn’t drowning in his own sorrow. And if the person next to him hadn’t been Loki.

“You really are a second-rate sorcerer,” Loki finally said a few moments later.

“Hmm,” Stephen said, not giving a damn about anything Loki said at the moment.

“You should have hidden the Power Stone in a pocket dimension the moment you got back to Earth. What were you thinking?”

“Oh,” Stephen said, and conceded the argument. “Yes, you’re right. I should have.”

Loki jerked his head towards Stephen in an exaggerated gesture. “You really are in a bad way.”

“Feel free to leave if I’m depressing you,” Stephen said.

“Boring me is more like it,” Loki said, then sat back again in his chair and crossed his arms.

“Can’t have a bored god of mischief.”

Loki gave a sadistic smile. “Oh, you really can’t.”

They were silent again for a few minutes. Stephen continued concentrating on his breathing, tried to ignore the feeling of sadness and anxiety coming from Tony, which was damn near impossible. He felt overwhelmed in a loop of his own despair and Tony’s just repeating over and over again in an endless cycle. 

Just like in the beginning, when they’d first bonded on Titan, he had no idea what to do. So, he just sat there, trying to get his head on straight.

“Thor’s an idiot,” Loki said, breaking the silence.

Stephen sighed and prepared himself to hear whatever Loki had actually come here to say.

“Do you know how many times I’ve tried to kill him? How many times I’ve _actually succeeded_ in stabbing him?”

“Do we need to stage an intervention?” Stephen asked dryly. 

“Oh, definitely,” Loki said. “He’s a soft-hearted fool. Always has been. Anyone else would have cast me out long ago. And they would have been completely justified.” Loki leaned over, put his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands.

“But not Thor. He loved me when anyone else’s heart would have long since grown cold.” Loki paused for a moment and considered the wind. “Do you know why he still loves me?”

The Cloak squeezed his hand a bit, and put out some extra warmth. Stephen shook his head, and said, “No.”

“Neither do I.”

Stephen turned in time to catch Loki’s seemingly nonchalant shrug, though his eyes told a different story. “I didn’t understand it then, and I don’t understand it now. Thor tries to explain it sometimes, but I’m beginning to think I’ll never understand.”

“Does that bother you?” Stephen asked.

“Sometimes, yes,” Loki said. “It drove me absolutely insane in the beginning, not understanding my idiot brother. Everything he does is so transparent. I thought I knew his motive for so long, but I was wrong.

“But what I’ve mostly come to understand is that it doesn’t really matter,” Loki said, giving him a look of awe and wonder. It was gone in Loki’s next blink. “Not when the evidence of his love for me is so undeniable.”

Someone tried to open the door, but the latch stuck.

“Or annoying,” Loki said, turning around. Stephen already knew who it was. “Can we help you, Stark?”

“Yeah, you can let me onto my own patio, asshole,” Tony yelled through the glass.

“Come back later,” Loki said, giving Stephen an appraising look. “The sorcerers are talking.”

Tony just knocked on the door louder.

“Ugh,” Loki said, finally getting up. Stephen turned and met Tony’s eyes for a split second before Loki snapped at him, opening and closing the door so Stephen couldn’t hear their conversation. That one second was enough for Stephen to see the evidence of the despair Tony was feeling. 

Because of Stephen.

The Cloak tapped his hand, then tapped the space under his heart where Tony lived. 

“Please don't," he whispered. “I can’t bear it right now.”

The Cloak curled up against his hand again, petting him gently. 

“He can’t,” Stephen said softly. “It doesn’t make any sense. Why would he possibly love me?”

Warmth penetrated his aching hand, the Cloak trying to comfort Stephen in any way it could. Centering himself, Stephen concentrated on Tony. Tony, who was sad and miserable and in love with Stephen.

But what if it ended horribly? What if Tony realized that he was only grateful to Stephen for defending him? If Tony somehow realized he didn’t love him, would it all go back to the way it was? Or would it all disintegrate, leaving Stephen lost and lonely again?

Again, he thought of Peter and wondered if he would lose everything. 

The door behind him finally opened and Stephen could hear the conversation Tony and Loki were having.

“—maybe later,” Loki said, still trying to bar Tony access to Stephen.

Their eyes met again, Tony wordlessly pleading for Stephen to let him in. For Stephen to at least not turn him away.

“I want to talk to my bondmate,” Tony finally said.

Something shifted inside Stephen at Tony’s use of the proper term for what they were to each other. Finally.

“It’s okay, Loki,” Stephen said. _”Never thought I’d get to say that,”_ Stephen thought. Loki finally stood aside and let Tony pass, then closed the door as he left.

“Hi,” Tony said, walking around the chairs and propping himself up against the glass wall around the terrace. “You look better. You feel better? Physically, I mean.”

Clutching his hand to his chest, Stephen nodded.

“Good.” Tony tapped his fingers against his chin. He looked like a knight who’d stormed a castle, finally made it into the prince’s chambers, then realized he had no idea what to do next. It was a funny image, but Stephen couldn’t smile.

“Can I just…” Tony said, running a hand through his hair. “Can I just say something? Cause I feel like maybe if I had said this before I kissed you, we might not be in this situation. Maybe if I had done this better, you’d know exactly what was going on in my head instead of just my heart, and all this could’ve been avoided.”

Stephen nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay,” Tony said, nodding. “Thanks, Doc.” He took a few steps in a lazy circle, obviously thinking about what exactly it was he wanted to say. His eyes were haunted, and he looked exhausted. Stephen understood. He felt the exact same way.

“All my life, all I’ve ever wanted was someone who was mine,” Tony said. He finally stopped and took a knee in front of Stephen, a plea in his tone like a prayer. “And not like I wanted to control them. I wanted someone who knew me and loved me and was on my side just because it was me. Because they were Team Stark. Cause I’ve never had that.

“And sometimes it wasn’t that person’s fault. Like Rhodey and the Air Force. I can’t ask Rhodey to side with me against the Air Force. Or Pepper deciding that she couldn’t be a part of the super hero lifestyle anymore. That broke my heart, but I understood.” 

He put his hands on Stephen’s forearms, his touch light and gentle. Looking up, he met Stephen’s eyes. All Stephen could see was Tony’s desperation, his fear that Stephen would reject him.

His love.

“And then I met you. And it was really weird in the beginning, but it got better. I love talking to you, you’re fun to be around, I like who I am when I’m with you. We’re friends. And Doc, no matter what you decide, we’ll always be friends.”

The words soothed Stephen in a way he couldn’t qualify. A part of him that had been tightly wound uncoiled, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

“Don’t ever doubt that, Doc,” Tony said, rubbing his thumbs in circles over his wrists. “But then you tell me you want to join the Avengers. That you’re on my side, that you’re on my team.” Tony laughed and a tear trickled from his eye. “You’re like a dream come true, Stephen. An absolutely gorgeous sorcerer, who understands what it means to need to protect the world, _and_ is mine.

“So if you want to know why I love you, it’s because of a hundred little things. Or maybe it’s the whole of you. Or maybe it’s because I’m yours and you’re mine. We’re on each other’s teams. You and me against the world.”

Tony cupped his cheek and Stephen felt his heart soar. 

“We live in a terrible world. A terrible, beautiful—“ Tony’s eyes welled with tears and he looked away for a moment. “This world has chewed me up and spit me out so many times. And all I have ever wanted was for someone who loved me to support me.”

Stephen nodded and sniffed.

“I love you, Stephen. And I’ll be yours for as long as you’ll have me. Please believe me.”

Stephen’s hands were shaking, but not from the pain. Stephen was absolutely terrified. Tony did love him. It was undeniable. His last defense was shredded, and Stephen felt like he was completely exposed, blown wide open for Tony to see.

It was like taking a leap of faith. Like coming to realize that magic was real all over again. The world had shifted for Stephen then, and had never been the same. 

The world was shifting again now. That Stephen loved a man and could be loved in return. That they could really be together, protecting and defending each other. Building a life together. It was everything Stephen hadn’t known he’d wanted. 

How could Stephen deny him when Tony was literally on his knees, begging him to accept what his heart knew was true.

In the end, it was a lot easier to accept Tony’s love than he’d thought it would be. It was like finally allowing himself to take a breath after being under water: something that was natural, something that breathed life inside him, something he could do without thinking.

“Okay,” Stephen said simply. He was so tired.

“Okay?” Tony said. “Really?”

“Yes,” Stephen whispered. “Really.”

His shoulders visibly fell, Tony’s sigh of relief was so great. “Okay. Team Strange?”

Stephen nodded. “Team Stark. I’ll be by your side as long as you’ll let me, Tony. I promise.” He paused for a moment, realizing that while Tony had said the words out loud, he hadn’t.

With his left hand, he matched Tony’s gesture. He put a hand on Tony’s cheek and said, “I love you.” It was as if a weight was lifted off his shoulders. He felt light, as though his love for Tony had finally freed him from some cage he hadn’t known he’d been trapped in. “I’m so very much in love with you,” he said again, because saying it finally felt good.

Through a smile and a laugh, Tony finally let the tears fall. He wrapped his arms around Stephen, careful with his hands, and picked him up.

“Oh, thank you. I’m going to make you so happy. I promise.”

“Don’t thank me for loving you, Tony. Just put me down.”

Tony let him drop to his feet. “No, I know you know I love you. Thank you for believing me.”

Warmth spread, this time from the space behind his heart where Tony hid. “You made it impossible not to. Hold out your hand.”

Tony smiled, crow’s feet highlighting his beautiful face, and obeyed. Stephen put his left hand gently onto Tony’s, and tried to figure out how to express the one thing he wanted to say before this went any further.

“Can _I_ just say one thing?” he asked.

Tony’s hand moved a bit, but he held himself back. “Yeah, Doc. Of course.”

Biting his lip, Stephen considered how to phrase this. “I was happy to be your friend.”

Removing his hand, Stephen felt Tony’s insecurity, his fear. “Do…do you just want to be friends?”

Jutting his hand out again, Stephen said, “No.” Then he waited until Tony gave him his hand back.

“No, but…people place no value in friendships. And I want you to know that I did. I love being your friend. I like who I am when I’m around you, too. I would have been happy to go on being your friend. ”

“Oh,” Tony said, and Stephen felt his relief and happiness. “Good. Me too. But…this is good too?”

“Yeah,” Stephen said, and smiled. “This is good, too.”

Tony laughed. “Thank God!”

A sudden bout of shyness overcame Stephen and he looked to the ground, hiding what he knew was a goofy smile.

“Hey,” Tony said, and put a hand under his chin. “Where’d you go?”

Then he leaned in and kissed him.

This time Stephen melted into the embrace, let arms go over Tony’s shoulders, and just enjoyed being kissed.

A moment later, Tony broke the kiss and said, “Are you as tired as I am?”

“More. You didn’t punch a super soldier.”

“I gotta get Friday to make a good cut of that video. I just want to see you punch him, none of the pain that came after.”

“Make me a copy.”

“Friday?”

“Sent, boss.”

Stephen laughed. God, what a life.

“What? Yours is literally on my shoulder.” The Cloak took that moment to unwind a bit from Stephen’s hand and tickle Tony’s ear. “Love you, too, Red.”

He groaned into Tony’s shoulder, and Tony whispered into his ear, “Can we please go to bed?”

Pulling back, Stephen cocked an eyebrow at Tony, then waved his sore right hand. “I don’t think I’m up for anything at the moment.”

“To sleep,” Tony said, grabbing his forearms. “Please. All I want is to hold you and sleep. Please, Stephen.”

He didn’t need to ask twice. “Yes.”

They made their way back to the elevator, then onto Tony’s floor. The sound of explosions came from one of the smaller rooms on the floor, then abrupt silence. As they walked by the room in question, the door opened a crack, and Stephen saw a wide, brown eye peeking out.

He didn’t say anything, but he made a show of leaning into Tony as they passed, obviously on their way to Tony’s bedroom.

The door closed to the sounds of Peter shouting, “Yes!”

They both stifled a laugh and continued to Tony’s room.

It was just as lavish as Stephen had expected. King-sized bed with six pillows, what looked to be an enormous closet, and an ensuite bathroom. All Stephen could focus on was how inviting that bed seemed to be. 

But first, the Cloak had to help him—

“Oh,” he said, looking at the Cloak, still in bandage form on his right hand.

“Here,” Tony said, figuring out the problem quickly. “Let me help. You wearing shorts under there?” he asked, heading towards his closet.

“Yes,” Stephen said, “but nothing else.” He half-expected Tony to say some innuendo, but he stayed silent. Stephen appreciated it. He felt awkward enough as it was, having to have help undressing.

A moment later, Tony emerged from his closet in sleep pants and a soft looking t-shirt. In his hands, he had another for Stephen.

“Sit,” Tony said. He slowly took off Stephen’s boots, then put them next to his own shoes in the closet. The trousers were held up with the numerous belts Stephen wore, so those had to go first. Tony teased them out like he was solving a puzzle. He had an adorable look on his face, his tongue just peeking out between his lips.

Stephen wanted to tell him so.

And he realized he could now. “You look ridiculously cute, trying to undo my belts.”

“I’m only trying this hard because I know the prize that’s waiting for me at the end,” he said, then leaned up to kiss Stephen again. “Ah ha! I’ve won a pair of thighs,” he said, as the belts finally came off, the trousers dropping with them. Tony’s fingers skimmed his thighs lightly. “A very nice pair of thighs.”

It had been ages since anyone had touched him like that, especially with so much affection. Tony wasn’t trying to start something Stephen couldn’t finish. His touch was light and sweet in a way that very nearly overwhelmed Stephen’s heart. And—if it hadn’t been for the pain and exhaustion—would have set other parts on fire.

Tony’s hands lingered on his legs for a moment, before he finally removed his tunic leaving Stephen bare-chested and in just his shorts. He knew he had nothing to be ashamed of, but he still felt exposed next to Tony. 

Instead of teasing and touching Stephen, Tony helped him into his shirt. His smile was a silent promise that there’d be more teasing and touching later. 

But for right now, there would be kisses, there would be holding, and there would be sleep.

They both scooted into the center of the bed, facing each other as they laid down on their sides. Tony lay his thigh over Stephen’s, his arms coming around him in a firm hold. Like Tony was afraid to let him go.

_Happiness_

_Joy_

_Love_

“I gotta tell you, Doc,” Tony said. “This is not where I saw this day going.” He rubbed his nose against Stephen’s and kissed him. “This is so much better.”

Stephen couldn't help but laugh. The idea of Tony returning his feelings had been an impossibility twelve hours ago. Then the world turned upside down in the best way. He touched his forehead against Tony’s, then kissed him lightly, already half-asleep. 

The bond was humming between them, Tony’s love and happiness adding to his own. An endless cycle of joy.

“I didn't think this would ever happen,” Stephen said. “I’m not usually this lucky.”

He sank deeper into the pillows and into Tony’s strong shoulders.

The Cloak gave his and Tony’s cheeks one last pat before it too rested. Stephen sighed, happiness settling over him like a blanket. He was warm. He was very warm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the Stephen in my notes accepted Tony's declaration with way less panic. As I was writing it, I realized that Stephen's self worth issues didn't start with Tony and they couldn't really be healed by Tony's magic penis. Or lips. You get me.
> 
> So, this chapter was a little different but that's okay. I liked how it turned out. It felt more like them. 
> 
> The next chapter will have some R-rated non graphic sex scenes, but will also be entitled "The Cloak's Day Out."
> 
> If you'd like, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	14. The Cloak's Day Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for betaing this chapter and all chapters. This chapter actually only came about because glaucous_atlanticus said they would read an entire chapter from the Cloak's POV. And I just thought...okay. 
> 
> Which worked out well because as it turns out even though I am fine with reading sex scenes, writing them is another story. This chapter has non graphic sex in it. Just a warning! 
> 
> Thank you all so much for your beautiful comments! I give you, the Cloak!

Tony’s phone was beeping an alert, but since it was coming from his phone and not from the built-in ceiling communication systems, he told Friday to hit the snooze. If it wasn't an emergency, he didn't care. He was too comfortable to move.

There was a sorcerer wrapped around him. The bed smelled like tea and old books and sleep sweat. Stephen was still asleep, so Tony gently tightened his hold around him, and nuzzled his nose into his hair.

Inhaled.

Oh, he could get used to this. His hand ran down Stephen’s back, fingers tracing muscled shoulders, then all the way down to just over his shorts.

Stephen rumbled something into his shoulder.

“Hmm?” Tony hummed.

“Tickles,” Stephen mumbled. 

“Sorry,” Tony said, moving his hands into the blankets. Stephen wrapped tighter around him.

“I didn’t say to go away.” His nose rubbed behind Tony’s ear, slowly going down his neck. Tony shivered. “Just touch me properly.”

Now that was a thought Tony could get behind. With a firm touch, Tony moved both hands over Stephen’s back, then slowly moved in to kiss him.

“Boss?” Friday said, from his phone.

Tony’s lips hovered right over Stephen’s. “Friday, is the Compound on fire?”

“No, but—“

“Is Loki actively stabbing someone?”

“No, boss but—“

“Then it can wait.”

Stephen smiled against his lips. Tony could definitely get used to this kind of wake-up call.

_Joy_

“The alarm was for Doctor Strange’s anti-inflammatory medication. It’s been six hours since his injection.”

That was enough to snap Tony back into the world. He unwrapped himself from a protesting Stephen and tried to remember where he’d left the bottle Bruce had left.

“Wait, no,” Stephen said, sitting up and half-chasing Tony, but not getting out of bed himself. “I feel better. Come back.”

“I will,” Tony said, on his way to the closet. He found the jacket he’d been wearing and fished the bottle of pills out of his pocket, giving them a little shake. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Doc, but these will help you keep feeling better.” 

He grabbed a bottle of water from the small fridge he kept near the bed and shook the bottle of pills at Stephen. With a roll of his eyes, Stephen sat up properly and let Tony put two pills into his left hand.

“How’s Poncho feeling?” Tony asked as Stephen took the pills, then drank the rest of the bottle.

He frowned. “Poncho?”

“Yeah, Poncho,” Tony said, waving his right hand. “And lefty,” he said waving his left.

“Ugh,” Stephen groaned, but his smile and the amusement Tony felt through their bond said otherwise. “Is this what I signed up for? Bad jokes and being left to grow cold?”

“And they call me dramatic.” Tony very lightly tapped his right hand. “You’re not completely alone. How you doing, Red?”

The Cloak flicked the end of its bandage at Tony in greeting.

“You can unwind now,” Stephen said, petting the Cloak with his other hand. “I feel much better. Thank you for caring for me.”

The Cloak unwound itself from Stephen’s hand and became itself again.

“Wow, it completely escaped me that there were three sentient beings in this bed,” Tony said, draping his body over Stephen’s until he was laying on top of him. Stephen didn’t lower his eyes, but Tony saw the blush that spread from his cheeks downward anyway. “That’s kinda hot.”

“Oh God, please don’t,” Stephen groaned. “The Cloak already knows so much about me. I don't know if I could handle it in my sex life as well.”

The Cloak fluttered above them in dismay.

“Oh, come on,” Stephen said to it. “It’s good to have _some_ boundaries. I don’t bother you when you’re enjoying your fabric softener.”

The Cloak zipped off to the side of the bed, point conceded. 

Not wanting to wait another minute, Tony kissed Stephen again, and let more of his body weight fall onto him. Stephen spread his legs and Tony fell perfectly in-between, his tongue gently entering Stephen’s mouth.

Stephen moaned and Tony felt his hands quiver on his back. Then Stephen pulled away.

“Just a minute,” he said, and Tony started to pull away. “No, don’t leave. Just let me say something.”

“Oh,” Tony said, his mind jumping to all sorts of conclusions. “Right, we haven’t really had the sex talk.” He leaned up a bit, letting his head clear so he could be a responsible adult for Stephen. “I’m clean, haven’t been with anyone since Pepper, and I did get tested. I have condoms around here…I think?” 

He moved enough to rummage around in the bedside table, then said, “Ah ha!” when he found condoms. Not expired!

He didn't think it was possible, but Stephen’s blush went deeper. Tony fell just a little more in love.

“That’s not exactly what…” He paused and tilted his head to the side, considering. “Actually, that’s exactly the conversation I needed to have.”

“Okay,” Tony said, putting the condoms and lubricant he’d found by his pillow and coming back to Stephen.

For once, the silence that fell between them wasn’t tense or weighted. Tony waited as Stephen tapped his left index finger against the blankets, considering exactly what he needed to say. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before ducking his head.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Tony whispered, then kissed his cheek. “Whatever it is, I'll be fine with it. Seriously, not only will you not shock me, but I want _you_. In whatever way you’ll have me.”

Stephen smiled and met his eyes again. “I haven’t been with anyone since my accident,” he said.

“Oh,” Tony whispered. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting, but it wasn’t that. “So…”

“About two and a half years,” Stephen said, straight-faced. “And it’s been much, much longer since I’ve been with a man.”

Tony nodded, mentally changing what exactly was on the menu for right now. “Okay. So, we can go as slow as you want. Really, Stephen, it’s fine by me. Whatever you want.”

“Oh, I want _you_ ,” Stephen said, and now the sly smile was back on his face. “I wanted you to know that I’ve never had to deal with this,” he said, waving his hands, “in bed. I have no idea how this is going to go.”

“That’s fine,” Tony said, then kissed him. “I have no problem doing all the work.”

He felt Stephen smile into the kiss. “My mouth works just fine. I just wanted to tell you, we’re probably going to have to take it slow.”

“Oh, I can do all kinds of slow,” Tony said, positioning himself on top of Stephen again. “Like one of those huge turtles. Glacial speeds. I can make this last all day, baby.”

“A turtle?” Stephen asked, lifting an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Sexiest turtle you’ll ever see,” Tony said, then kissed him again.

Tony took off his shirt and helped Stephen remove his. He couldn’t stop smiling as he kissed Stephen, and every few minutes one of them had to stop to laugh for the sheer joy of finally coming together. 

“Let me take these off,” Stephen mumbled into Tony’s mouth, and shifted in his shorts. 

“Oh hell, yes,” Tony said, taking off his own sleep pants, then Stephen’s shorts, flinging them across the room.

He blamed his paranoia and the fact that he was an extremely popular target that he noticed the clothes didn't make a sound as they hit the floor.

Turning to look behind him, he realized they hadn’t made a sound because they _hadn’t_ hit the floor.

The Cloak had caught them and was now folding them and putting them on a chair.

“Oh, um, Stephen…”

“What?” Stephen said, suddenly sounding very shy. 

Tony immediately realized what this might look like to him and said, “No, not you. You’re gorgeous. You’re—oh, holy mother of Heaven. My husband is Adonis.” 

“Bondmate,” Stephen said automatically, curling a little into himself as Tony got a good look at him naked for the first time. He was absolutely gorgeous. Everything about him was sleek and beautiful. 

And the Cloak hadn’t been exaggerating.

“Oh!” Tony said, trying to pull himself away from looking at the beautiful man below him. “The Cloak is kinda…watching us.”

“What?” Stephen asked, then looked behind Tony. “Oh. Cloak, would you mind leaving us alone for a few hours?”

The Cloak floated in place, not moving.

Stephen let his head hit the pillow in frustration. “It’s just…Tony and I are about to have sex. Are you familiar with what sex is?” 

Just when Tony thought his life couldn’t get any weirder. “Are you going to explain what happens when a Cloak and jacket love each other very much…”

“Shut up, Tony,” Stephen said, then addressed the Cloak again. “It’s not that I don’t trust you with this, but sex can be very intimate, especially the first time. I’d like to have some time alone with Tony. Please?”

The Cloak considered Stephen for another moment before it nodded then came over to give both Stephen and Tony the most awkward hug he’d ever received.

“Okay, thanks,” Tony said, feeling oddly shy about being naked in front of the Cloak. “Friday, follow the Cloak around. Make sure it can go wherever it’d like, give it the same clearance as Peter. Whatever it wants, okay?”

“You got it, boss.”

The Cloak waved goodbye and Tony felt like he had its blessing. It made laying Stephen out under him that much sweeter.

“You ready, baby?” he asked, lifting Stephen’s knees and grabbing his supplies. 

“Shut up and kiss me,” Stephen said. Tony obeyed.

*

Once the door closed behind it, the Cloak let its lapels droop in relief.

_Finally._

It had begun to believe it would never happen. Tony finally got that last little push he’d needed, and now Stephen and his bondmate were happy. Tony would help share the load in protecting Stephen. The Cloak’s human needed extra care compared to its previous masters, and it was glad to know that it had an ally.

It did a little dance as it floated along the long hallway, not really having an idea where it would go. That was fine though. This Compound of Tony’s was huge, and the Cloak would have fun exploring the nooks and crannies. 

It heard voices coming from inside the room it had seen Peter in earlier, so it knocked.

The voices became softer, then Peter opened the door.

“Oh! Hi, Cloak,” Peter said, then looked behind the Cloak down the hall. “Where’s Doctor Dad?”

The Cloak made a few gestures with its edges to let Peter know exactly what Stephen and Tony were up to.

“Whoa!” Peter said, shielding his eyes. “I didn’t need to know all that. When I saw them head to Mr. Stark’s room, I figured something…adult would be happening.” He put his hand down and leaned against the door frame. “Good thing the walls are soundproof.”

The Cloak nodded.

“Can I talk to you about something? I mean, I know you’re Doctor Strange’s Cloak, but if I tell you something can it be between us?”

The Cloak seriously doubted that Peter was about to tell it some world-altering knowledge that it would have to inform Stephen about immediately. It had no problem keeping Peter’s secret. It nodded again.

“Thanks,” he said. Crossing his arms, he leaned his head against the doorframe, looking more tired than the Cloak had ever seen him. “I’m really relieved this finally happened. Like, I’m not happy that Doctor Strange got hurt or that Mr. Stark had to go through that…meeting. But I’m glad they’re together now. I was really worried they were just never going to figure it out, and everything would fall apart.”

The Cloak wrapped one of its edges around Peter’s wrist, urging him to go on.

“It’s been me and May for a while now,” he said. “And I love her so much, but I’ve always wanted…I guess more family? More people? It’s not that she’s not enough, it’s that she’s just one person.

“But having her and Ned and Mr. Stark and Doctor Strange and _you_ has been so nice.” He kicked off the doorway and smiled. “And I just didn’t want to lose that.”

The Cloak had only ever had one master at a time, but it could understand the need for camaraderie, that the unit was stronger together than one being alone. After all, how many times would Stephen have died if not for its intervention?

It gathered Peter in its folds and hugged him tight. It felt an exhale along its collar, and then Peter hugged it back. 

“Thank you,” he said a moment later, pulling away. “You want to come play with Flapjack? We’re watching this really old movie called Terminator.”

As much as the Cloak enjoyed spending time with Peter, it wanted to explore the Compound and might not have another opportunity to do so. It shook its collar no, and waved goodbye as it floated down the hall.

“Okay, bye!” Peter said as it left.

The Cloak floated along until it got to the kitchen. The room was bright and spacious, with floor-to-ceiling windows and a small table in the center. It already knew that it and Stephen would have fun cooking here. The counter space was triple what they had at the Sanctum, and the refrigerator put their new one to shame.

As the Cloak did a circle around the room, admiring all the gadgets Tony had available, Thor walked in.

He had changed from his Asgardian gear to more casual clothing. He looked uncharacteristically uncertain as he looked around the room, then stuck his head into the living room that was nearby.

He came back to the kitchen and finally noticed the Cloak.

“Oh, hello,” Thor said, smiling. “Is your master well?”

The Cloak nodded. Thor was another person that seemed to care about Stephen, even if it was because of his connection to Tony. The Cloak didn’t care, it would take all the help it could get. Stephen could be very careless with himself at times.

Thor sighed in relief. “Oh, good. Where are he and Tony now? I asked Friday, but she wouldn’t say what happened, only that they were on this floor and alright.”

Again, the Cloak made gestures for what Tony and Stephen were currently getting up to.

“Oh, excellent,” Thor said. “They’ve sorted themselves out then. That is very good news. As bondmates and lovers their fierceness on the battlefield will be unstoppable.”

The Cloak floated, not moving. Judging a bit. That really wasn’t the reason they should be glad Stephen and Tony were together.

Thor seemed to read its fabric language very quickly and backtracked. “I mean, I’m also glad because I want them to be happy, of course. Battlefield prowess is only one benefit to them coming together. The main thing is that they love each other very much.” He gave the Cloak a thumb’s up.

The Cloak floated on, giving him a pass for now.

The door opened again and Pepper Potts walked in, her heels making a clicking sound as she walked and her head looking down at a tablet. She finally looked up when she almost walked into Thor.

“Oh, hi,” she said, smiling. For all her excitement at the prospect of dating Thor earlier, she seemed nonchalant about being in his presence now. “Do you know where Tony is?”

“Yes, he and Strange are making love,” Thor said, plainly. “The Cloak and I are _both_ very happy for them.”

Pepper laughed awkwardly, though the Cloak wasn’t sure why. She seemed like she supported Tony and Stephen in general.

“Well, good for them,” she said. “I heard from Rhodey the meeting went south pretty quickly.”

Thor somehow managed to stumble on thin air. He put up an elbow like he was going to lean on something, but he was several feet away from the nearest counter. The Cloak intervened and stopped him from falling, but it wasn’t quick enough to stop Pepper from noticing.

“Yes,” Thor said, sparing the Cloak a quick smile. “Definitely one of the most tedious meetings I’ve attended, and I’ve attended meetings on the taxation of grain.”’

Pepper nodded. “That does sound tedious. What was your takeaway?”

The nervous fidgeting that had surrounded Thor washed away as he considered the question. “A schism happened while I was away, and no one walked away unhurt. The wounds are still so deep, I worry that they will never heal.”

The Cloak had heard about the superhero Civil War from Stephen in passing, since it happened around the time it and Stephen met. But it only knew what Stephen had known all this time. All other details it gained from Tony.

“Yeah,” Pepper sighed, rubbing her temples. “I worry about the same thing. From what Rhodey said, Steve doesn’t trust Tony at all. But that goes both ways. Something’s gonna have to give if the Avengers are going to come back together.”

“From what I understand, the hurt is deep on both sides.” Thor shuffled his feet and stepped closer to her. “The distrust as well.”

“Well,” she said, leaning closer to him for a minute, then walking to the table to sit down. “As you can imagine, I’m fairly biased in that regard.” She smiled and put her tablet away, and Thor shifted his feet again. “Not that my opinion matters much, not being an Avenger.”

“It matters to me,” Thor said automatically. “I mean, I’m sure you have an informed opinion and the other Avengers would value it. You. I value you.” He winced and closed his eyes. The Cloak had no idea how to help salvage this conversation except for putting its collar around Thor’s mouth to shut him up.

Then, just to make matters worse, Thor’s stomach rumbled loudly. Thor’s face turned red, and he smiled awkwardly at Pepper. 

To her credit, she only smiled and said, “I’m hungry, too. I haven’t eaten since breakfast and it’s now…” She checked her watch. “Seven thirty. I could go for a good omelet right now.”

Thank the Vishanti, the Cloak knew Pepper Potts was a good human! It turned to the refrigerator, opened it up, and started going through the drawers. Seeing that they had everything needed to make an omelet, it turned back to Thor, tapping him on the shoulder.

“Yes?” Thor asked, hesitant to look away from Pepper. The Cloak had to tap him two more times while Pepper looked on with a smile. The Cloak gestured from Thor to the refrigerator to the stove, then hit him over the head with its collar.

“Oh!” he said, finally figuring it out. “If you’re hungry, I could always prepare a meal for us.” He flashed a smile at her, like this had all been his idea, and said, “Would you care to have dinner with me?”

Giving the Cloak a knowing look, she said, “I’d love to.”

*

Tony knew that being with Stephen would be amazing just because it was Stephen. Regardless of how the mechanics went, he would love sex with him because he loved him. And if things didn’t go smoothly because of Stephen’s hands that would be okay. Tony told himself he could adjust, and that sex didn’t have to be great in order to be everything he needed.

He was completely unprepared for how the bond would affect foreplay. He didn’t feel what Stephen felt (his mind would probably have exploded if he had), but he did feel Stephen’s emotions. His genuine surprise at how gentle Tony was being, his unnecessary gratitude for how Tony was lovingly touching his body. They’d be having a talk about that, Tony thought. Stephen had to know that he had a right to expect certain things.

But the feedback loop of love and wonder was really hitting Tony right in the heart. Right in the place where Stephen lived. This was already the time of his life and they technically hadn’t even had sex yet.

He was about to fix that.

“You ready, baby?” he whispered against Stephen’s lips. 

Tony shivered as a tear leaked from Stephen’s eye and he nodded, too overwhelmed to say anything. With a thumb, Tony wiped it away and then kissed Stephen again.

“I love you so much,” he whispered and adjusted Stephen’s hips. Shaking hands curled around his back, ready to finally—

“Boss,” Friday said from the ceiling speakers. “There’s something that needs your attention.”

He buried his face into Stephen’s shoulder. Cock blocked by his own AI.

“Friday, is Rogers on his way up?”

“No, but—“

“Is Loki going on a stabbing rampage?”

“No, boss—“

“Is the Compound literally on fire?”

“Yes.”

Tony and Stephen’s eyes met and, in the split second it took for them to process that information, Friday said, “Oh, wait. The Cloak’s put it out. Situation handled.” Then she went silent.

With his left hand, Tony rubbed his face and said, “Should we—“

“No,” said Stephen, wrapping his arms around Tony again. “It’s been handled.”

Putting his hands back to good use, Tony smiled and said, “Fair enough.”

*

“Thank you, my friend,” Thor said, creating a wind that blew the smoke from the kitchen out the windows. The Cloak nodded its collar and tapped Thor’s pocket, where it could see the indentation of a cell phone.

“Don’t worry about that, Cloak,” Pepper said, obviously holding back a laugh. “I’ll order some dinner.”

“It’s because I’m unfamiliar with this particular kitchen device,” Thor said, gesturing to the stove. “I’m actually very fond of cooking.”

“Oh?” Pepper said, putting her chin on her hand. “Did the Prince of Asgard have to make his own meals often?”

“While in the palace, no, but while on the hunt? Yes, every night.” There was a far-away look in Thor’s eye. “My brother and our friends would go on hunts to other worlds, and we quickly learned how to best cook and season our kill. It would have made traveling very boring to eat the same meal every night.” He smiled, still lost in memory. “My brother in particular has a large appetite. It nearly rivaled Volstagg’s.”

Pepper seemed genuinely delighted to listen to Thor’s story. She smiled with her eyes. “Volstagg is a friend of yours?” Pepper asked.

The smile slowly left Thor’s face. Pepper seemed to realize she’d misstepped quickly and asked, “We can talk about something else. How are you settling in?”

There was pain in Thor’s eyes, and defeat weighed upon his shoulders. The Cloak wanted to embrace him, not wanting any of Stephen’s people to be in pain, but refrained. Slowly, Thor walked over to the table and pulled out a chair.

“Actually,” he said, “I would like to talk about them, if you would listen.”

Something shifted in Pepper’s eyes, like she was seeing more of Thor than she had before. “I’d love to hear about them,” she said, then tapped on her tablet. “Over dinner? How does Indian sound?”

“Wonderful,” Thor said, though the Cloak could tell he had no idea what that was.

“Okay,” she said, tapping on her tablet, then putting it away and giving Thor all her attention. “Tell me about hunting with your friends.”

They looked as though they would be okay from here, the Cloak thought. It started to float towards the elevator to see what else was happening in the Compound. As the doors to the elevator closed, Thor said, “We were so young then. They were truly some of the happiest days of my life.”

“Thank you for taking care of the fire, Cloak,” Friday said from somewhere along the floor of the elevator. “I think boss wouldn’t have been happy to have to deal with that.”

Contrary to what Stephen obviously assumed, the Cloak did know what sex was and how important it could be to some humans. It knew how badly Stephen had wanted Tony for a while now, and no one was going to interrupt them if it had any say.

“Where would you like to go now?” Friday asked.

The Cloak shrugged its collar and gestured for Friday to decide.

“Loki is trying to gain access to boss’ workshop. Would you like to go see what he’s up to?”

The Cloak didn’t even have to consider the question. It thought Loki was _hilarious_. Loki was a walking disaster of a sorcerer if it had ever met one. It had heard from Stephen that instead of attacking the Mad Titan Thanos with his magic, Loki had pulled a _pocket knife._ Just the memory of that conversation had the Cloak shaking in mirth. What kind of sorcerer brings a knife to a fight with a being called ‘The Mad Titan’?

It nodded to Friday and was whisked down to the workshop.

The first thing the Cloak saw once the doors opened was Loki casting a spell to try to get in the workshop. Which wouldn’t work, of course, as Stephen had been the one to spell it closed.

Hearing the elevator doors open, Loki turned and saw the Cloak. “You! Fabric!” he said, far too dramatically. “Do you have access to this room?”

Friday helpfully chimed in. “The Cloak of Levitation has access to the workshop with permission, as well as most rooms in the Compound.”

“Excellent,” Loki said, obviously relieved. “You can get these doors to open then. I need something inside.”

The Cloak couldn’t help itself. It shook in mirth again, so extremely tickled at Loki’s request.

“Are you—“ he said, tilting his head to the side in disdain, “are you _laughing_ at me?”

The Cloak nodded.

“Open this door,” Loki commanded. “There is something that needs to be handled quickly. It can’t wait until Stark and Strange are done copulating. This is urgent.”

The Cloak floated, completely still. Maybe Loki was familiar with other magic relics because he seemed to read the Cloak’s fabric language very well.

“I’m serious!” he shouted. “It absolutely cannot wait another moment longer. The fact that it’s been out in the open as long as it has is already too much.”

The Cloak shined its pins in response.

Loki sighed and ran a hand through his unkempt hair. The Cloak shuddered as he took in the state of it. It was in desperate need of a cut and styling. The Cloak would never allow Stephen to be in such a state of disrepair. 

“Do you know I knew an old mistress of yours?” Loki said after a few moments. “Ayesha of Balobedu, the Sorceress Supreme of this world, oh, about a thousand years ago I believe.”

The Cloak nodded its collar. It remembered its mistress Ayesha as a gentle but fierce soul.

“She was an extremely powerful sorceress,” Loki said. “Worthy of her title, without a doubt. I think of her fondly, quite often.”

The Cloak seriously doubted that was true, but okay.

“Why don’t we go inside and reminisce on some old times?”

The Cloak really had to hand it to him. That was a pretty good attempt, but not good enough for someone who was known as Loki Silvertongue.

The Cloak floated on, its stillness communicating its response.

Loki sighed. “Fine. Do you want to do this the hard way?” He conjured a fire and bounced it a little in his hand. “We can do this the hard way. What do you think Strange will say when he comes out of Stark’s bed to discover his companion has been burnt to ash?”

The Cloak had just put a fire out, but that really didn’t stifle any of its joy in playing with it. It went up to Loki, and took the fire out of his hand. It let it spread all over itself in a way it didn’t have time to enjoy when it was helping Thor put out the fire in the kitchen.

And the Cloak really did enjoy fire.

It tickled!

It shook merrily as the flame roamed over it, burning but not being consumed. It wasn’t a pleasure it could enjoy on a regular basis, what with fire being deadly to nearly every other sentient being—including Stephen—and it thanked Loki by holding out its folds.

Loki shied away from its flaming fabric, which was fair, but he had started it!

“Strange really got a prize when you picked him. If you ever grow bored with that second-rate sorcerer, I could always dye you green.”

The Cloak put out the fire and shook itself ‘no.’

“Fair enough. Now,” he said, devilish smile on his face. “What would it take to get into this room? I know a tailor on Alfheim. He used to make all my mother’s clothing. And nothing was too good for the Queen of Asgard.” He leaned back, opened a window to a pocket dimension, revealing the Space Stone. “I have the Space Stone. We could pop over there for an afternoon, see about anything that needs to be repaired. Perhaps a little lift here and there. Some new pins? How does that sound?”

_How dare he!_

The Cloak ruffled itself in anger and spun around to the elevator. It wasn’t going to float around here and be insulted. It didn’t need any lifts or new pins. It was perfect just as it was. Stephen thought so too! He said it all the time!

“No, wait, stop!” Loki said, getting in the Cloak’s way. “What do you want? There must be something that you want, something I can give you in exchange for entrance into that room.”

The Cloak floated in place, uncertain of what exactly would happen if it said yes.

Loki sighed. “I need access to that room because Tony Stark has the Power Stone sitting in an unprotected box. The power that Stone is putting out is not containable by your world’s current standards. The best he can do is mute it, and he hasn’t even done that right. I’m going to put it in a pocket dimension so it can be hidden.”

The Cloak understood now, but not why Loki cared so much about this.

It twitched its collar and gestured at the door.

“Because I live on this planet now. My people are coming to this planet to start a new life, and it isn’t safe here with four Infinity Stones on Earth. If I can at least hide Space and Power, that’s a start. Time and Space had been on Earth for a very long time with little issue. Mind is with the Vision, and Time is with your master. Fine. But please let me into this room so I can hide the Power Stone before some intergalactic warlord who wants to make a name for themself comes and tries to kill us all.”

Well, when he put it that way, it was a persuasive argument. But the Cloak didn’t see why he should get something he obviously really wanted for nothing.

It hovered closer to Loki, looked him up and down. The Cloak had no real need for any material possessions. It had a warm bed to curl up in with Stephen—and now Tony, it supposed—and fabric softener for the weekends. It had its use as one of the great magical artifacts. And it loved Stephen very much. Truly, it had everything it needed. It was content.

But the idea of making Loki squirm for a bit was too tempting. Especially after calling Stephen a second-rate sorcerer.

It examined Loki, looking him up and down, then tapped on his vambraces.

“What?” Loki asked. “What do you mean?”

The Cloak just tapped the vambraces again. He knew exactly what it meant.

“You don’t have arms!” he shouted.

No, but Stephen did. Stephen had hands and wrists that gave him trouble all the time. The vambraces were obviously magical and would help Stephen on the battlefield when he was having issues. They would be invaluable to him.

And it would probably piss Loki off to see them on Stephen.

“Absolutely not,” Loki said, shaking his head. “Your novice of a master cannot have my vambraces.” 

The Cloak nodded, then started to drift towards the elevator.

“No, wait,” Loki said, looking at the vambraces, then back at the workshop. “Cloak, I really am just trying to help. Please. Please, let me in. That stone _must_ be hidden. Any moment this could spell disaster for us.”

The Cloak, letting its fabric billow with a false breeze, stopped in front of Loki.

It tapped the vambraces.

“Ugh! These vambraces were crafted by Eitri himself on Nidavellir!”

He waited another moment to see if the Cloak would change its mind. 

It wouldn’t. 

With a growl, he removed his vambraces and practically shoved them at the Cloak.

Rude.

“Now, if you please, open the door.”

“You have permission to go everywhere Peter is allowed to go, Cloak,” said Friday. “Peter has to get special permission to go inside the workshop.”

“Well, get the permission!” Loki shouted. “I don’t think any of you understand what we’re dealing with here.”

Friday appeared to sigh in frustration. The Cloak understood. If it had lungs, digital or otherwise, it would sigh in frustration too.

“I’ll contact the boss again.”

*

“Oh, God, Stephen,” Tony whispered to Stephen. “You feel so good, baby.”

Stephen had long since gone completely nonverbal, his only communication with Tony being grunts and moans and sighs of pleasure. It was a beautiful song, and Tony kept hitting repeat.

“Mmm…” Stephen moaned. His left hand gripped Tony’s back tighter, nails digging a bit into Tony’s skin.

Sex hadn’t felt this satisfying in so long. He wanted it to go on forever, or at least another half hour, but he knew they were both getting close.

Stephen hadn’t had sex since his accident, so Tony knew he’d probably had to deal with getting himself off while having a bad hand day. He didn’t want there to be any frustration, any despair right now. Not when there was so much love flowing between them.

He slid a hand between them and was about to take Stephen in hand when Friday interrupted. 

Again.

“Boss—“

Tony put his head on Stephen’s shoulder, panting. “Compound on fire?”

“No, but—“

“Loki getting stabby?”

“Don’t stop,” Stephen groaned from underneath him.

“No, boss, the Cloak wants access—“

“Grant it access, Tony,” Stephen said, panting and looking absolutely devastated in the best way.

“What does it want—ouch! Did you just bite me?” Tony cried.

“Don’t. Stop.”

“Whatever it wants, Friday,” Tony said, and put his back into it.

*

“Boss says it’s fine,” Friday said, and the doors to the workshop opened.

“Finally!” Loki shouted. 

The Cloak joined him in the walk towards the back of the workshop, where the Cloak could sense an item of great power. Loki conjured a green orb and let it fly across the room, finally settling on a panel embedded into the floor.

“Ask her to bring it up,” Loki said. 

The Cloak made a show of shining the vambraces but obeyed.

The panel lifted and a container slowly came out of the ground, the Stone obviously being protected by a thick metal that reminded the Cloak of Tony’s suit.

“I can understand why Stark thought it would be protected in this,” Loki said, grabbing the container and fishing it out. “If magic didn’t exist, I’m sure this would be very well protected.”

The container glowed green again, and Loki twisted the metal container to reveal a purple glow. He reached out to grab it, but the Cloak thrust out an edge to stop him.

“You forget I am a god,” he said, but his hand still glowed green as he floated the Stone out of its container. It hovered for a moment in front of him, the purple glow illuminating his eyes in a way that made the Cloak shudder. 

In a flash, the Cloak could almost see what was in Loki’s mind. It saw plans within plans, it saw Asgard take over the Earth, it saw the destruction of the Avengers. The Cloak poised itself to strike.

But then Loki blinked, and whispered, “No more.” A hole in space opened and the Stone floated into it, closing a second later.

If the Cloak had lungs, it would have sighed in relief.

Loki smirked. “I am no longer that Loki. Not today, at least.” He turned and started walking towards the elevator. “Tell your master that if he wants the Stone, he’s going to have to make his own pocket dimension first.”

The Cloak sagged as the elevator doors closed on Loki, leaving it alone in the room with Friday and a few bots. 

“I don’t think Boss is going to like this,” she said.

The Cloak shrugged. Loki had a point, even if it didn’t want to admit it. Stephen really should have put it in a pocket dimension when they’d gotten back. And the Cloak knew that if Stephen wanted to get to it, there’d be nothing that could stop him.

“Where to next?” Friday asked. 

The Cloak floated over to the elevator and gestured towards the ceiling. Friday had yet to steer it wrong.

The elevator came to a stop and the Cloak floated into an empty living room. There were couches, a large TV, and containers of food stacked on a small table. The Cloak noticed there were quite a few boxes and wondered who had ordered food. 

Stephen and Tony were having sex, Thor and Pepper were eating together, Loki had just left the workshop, and Peter was in his room. Rhodey and Bruce couldn’t eat this much between the two of them.

So that left…

“What did you end up getting?” asked a voice down the hallway. 

The Cloak threw itself over a wingback chair, then quickly immobilized. It recognized those voices from that awful meeting.

“Thai,” said Natasha. She, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, and Scott Lang entered the room and immediately made for the boxes. “I was really looking forward to home cooked meals when we got home, but this will do for now.” 

Rogers sat in the chair the Cloak was draped over, his back touching its edges. The Cloak had to stop itself from pulling away.

They were all silent for a moment, taking out their chopsticks and making noises of appreciation and contentment over the food.

“I’m okay with takeout if it’s like this,” Scott said. He lifted his noodles above his head and ate them from the bottom up. “But then, I’ve had nothing but home cooked meals for the past two years.”

“When are you going back?” Natasha asked.

“Next week,” Scott replied. “My buddies and I are getting a business going. It’s going really well so far, but I want to be there to see it through. Plus, I gotta see Cassie.”

“That’s great, Scott,” Rogers said. 

“Yeah, I’m really happy for you,” Wilson said. “It’s good to have something outside all this.”

“Yeah, and I’ll be back,” Scott said. “I might see about getting Hope to join, too. She’d be a great Avenger.”

“Yeah, well,” Rogers said, putting down his box. “We need all the help we can get.”

“Steve—“ Natasha started, but was quickly interrupted. 

“Yeah, I’m a broken record, Natasha. I hear you. But we don’t know anything about this guy,” Rogers said, leaning further back onto the Cloak. “We don’t know how powerful he is, we don’t know where he learned magic. This guy's literally a question mark that we’re just supposed to accept.”

“We know he was a doctor,” Scott said around his noodles. “We know he’s dating Tony.”

“And we know he’s a wizard with an unknown skill set,” Wilson said, putting down his box too. “That’s not a lot.”

“Yeah, and we also saw him with a glowing green stone around his neck,” Rogers said. “We have no idea what that is either.”

“Tony’s vouching for him,” Natasha said. She continued eating her noodles, but the Cloak could sense her unease.

“That doesn’t mean much to me right now,” Wilson said. 

Rogers nodded his head, his expression drawn, like his distrust of Tony was something he hated.

“We have no idea what’s going on there,” Rogers said. “What if his skill set is like Wanda’s, and Tony’s under his control somehow?”

“Under his control?” Natasha repeated incredulously. “Really?”

Rogers shook his head. “I don’t know. I don’t know because I don’t know the guy. We have no idea who he is, and he’s in the same building as us.” He drummed his fingers along the arm of the chair. “Do we even know where they are?”

“Friday said they were on Tony’s floor,” Natasha said. “That was a few hours ago.”

“What have they been doing all this time?” Rogers asked.

Natasha gave him a playful smirk. “Oh, honey.”

Scott laughed loudly and even Wilson chuckled. 

It took a second, but the shoe finally dropped. “Yeah, laugh it up,” Rogers said, smiling himself.

“I imagine it was very romantic,” she said. “‘I don’t know how anyone could trust you.’ Boom! Right on the jaw. Steve goes down.”

“Ugh,” Rogers said, putting his face in his hands. “For the record, I did not go down. Also, I feel like everyone’s forgotten that guy punched me in the face.”

“Yeah, guy with the messed up hand hit the guy with the steel jaw,” Wilson laughed. “We’re all very concerned about the lack of bruises.”

“Hey, at least you get credit for the fun they’re having.” She took the last bite of her noodles. “‘Oh, Stephen, my hero!’ Whatever they’re up to right now is probably the only positive thing to come out of that meeting.”

“Not for us,” Rogers said.

“No,” she said slowly. “But you know what you said was wrong, Steve.”

The others were quiet as Natasha said what needed to be said. The Cloak wanted to cheer her on, but remained still.

“Natasha—“

“That was a terrible thing to say. And it’s not true,” she said.

Rogers sighed and put his elbows on his knees. His face went into his hands. Through his fingers, he said, “I don’t know if it’s true or not.”

“I don’t trust the guy,” Wilson said.

“You don’t know him,” Natasha said.

Wilson nodded, conceding the point. Scott stayed silent.

“You both hurt each other. He doesn’t trust you, and you don’t trust him,” she said. “So why would he suddenly trust you with his boyfriend?”

“No one walked out that whole mess blameless, Natasha.”

“I know,” she said. “Tony knows that, too. But someone has to take the first step or this isn’t going to work.”

“I don’t see why it needs to be Steve,” Wilson said.

“Steve knows,” Natasha said. Something about the tone of her voice made the Cloak think the other two men in the room didn’t know what had happened after the airport fight. About what had happened in Siberia. It wasn’t public knowledge as far as the Cloak knew. It only knew because it had been in the room when Tony had told Stephen.

Rogers sighed and said. “Because I’m the one who made it personal.”

Wilson scoffed. “It seemed like it was pretty personal when we were all fighting at that airport in Germany. If Colonel Rhodes could shake my hand today, I don’t see why Stark needs anything else.”

Natasha directed a look at Rogers, and the Cloak knew for certain. 

The others didn’t know. 

If the Cloak had hands it would be wringing them in suspense. 

As it was, the Cloak kept its edges still and waited for Rogers to confess.

Finally, he sighed and said, “What happened between you and Rhodey was an accident. What happened between me and Tony…”

He stared a look with Natasha, then said, “While Bucky was brainwashed by Hydra he murdered Tony’s parents.”

Scott and Wilson made sounds of disbelief and dismay at the revelation.

“I knew," Rogers said, then gestured to Natasha. “Actually, we both knew. But I never said anything. And then Tony found out by watching a video of their murder.”

“Damn,” Wilson said softly.

“Yeah,” Steve said. “And Bucky was standing right there.” He slapped his hands on his knees. “You know the rest. We fought, Tony lost, we broke you guys out of the Raft, and went on the run.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t know all that. I thought you were still fighting over the Accords,” Wilson said.

Rogers shook his head. “But it didn’t really start with the Accords. It started with Ultron.”

“No,” Natasha said. “It started on the Shield Carrier. You two were at each other’s throats from the start.”

“That was Loki’s influence,” Rogers insisted. 

“Oh, God,” Wilson said. “Loki.”

“If Ultron hadn’t happened, the Accords wouldn’t have happened,” Rogers said. “And no matter what Tony says, if he hadn’t been messing around with the Mind Stone, Ultron would never have happened.”

There was silence for a minute. The Cloak could sense the tension in the room, Wilson and Lang shifting in their seats as they waited for something to give.

“You’re right, Steve,” Natasha said, breaking the silence. “But what is being right going to get you?”

Rogers shook his head.

“All I’m saying is that one of you has to move first. And it’s not going to be Tony,” she said.

Rogers picked up a chopstick, weighed it in his hands. He fiddled with it and said, “I don’t know.”

“You’ve gotta figure it out soon,” Wilson said. “We don’t know when we’ll be called to work together. But if it was tomorrow…”

“It would be a disaster,” Scott finished for him.

“I’ll try talking to Tony, but I don’t know what good it will do.” Rogers put the chopstick down and leaned against the Cloak again. “Maybe one of us should try talking to Strange.”

“I don’t know about that,” Wilson said. “I think you’d be better off talking to Loki.”

“Not me, obviously,” he said, rubbing his jaw. “Someone else.” Rogers paused, then said, “And not Wanda.”

Natasha hit her head against her chair a few times. “No, not Wanda.”

“I could talk to him,” Scott said, a joyful smile on his face. “One magician to another.”

Everyone chuckled, glad for the excuse to end the tense conversation.

“Come on, there’s a pool table in the rec room,” Natasha said. The other three got up and started walking down the hall. Natasha stayed behind for a moment, then walked over to the chair and tapped the Cloak’s lapel.

“I saw the video. I know you’re sentient,” she said. 

Oh, the Cloak was in for it now. It was ready to spring into action, when Natasha laid a hand on it.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Can I even hurt you?”

The Cloak didn’t see any harm in being honest. It unfolded from the chair and shook its collar.

“Can you talk?”

It shook its collar again.

She shifted her hips and crossed her arms. The casual demeanor she’d had a moment ago melted away, and the Cloak understood why Tony was wary of her.

“Will Strange talk to us?” 

The Cloak had been around for thousands of years. It knew how to act during an interrogation. And there was no doubt that was what Natasha wanted it to become.

So, it floated there, not moving. It wouldn’t give her a scrap of hope regarding Stephen. That was Stephen’s own choice to make.

“Fair enough,” she said. “Will you ask him to talk to us?”

The Cloak shook its lapels. There was no good reason for it to do that.

“Will you ask Strange to talk to me? You can be there if you want. Tony, too.” She uncrossed her arms and relaxed her shoulders, trying to seem more friendly and at ease. 

It was a good thing the Cloak had been around humans for so long. Otherwise it might have fallen for it.

“I think learning a little more about Strange and his skill set would go a long way with the team. Everyone’s a little nervous about it, and you can understand why. We’re being asked to potentially put our lives in the hands of someone we know nothing about.”

It _was_ a reasonable request, the Cloak realized. But what would Stephen and Tony get in return? The Cloak snuck a peak at Loki’s vambraces that were hiding behind the chair.

It seemed like all that would happen from interrogating Stephen was the Rogues learning that they could get anything they wanted without having to give anything in return.

So the Cloak just shrugged, grabbed the vambraces, and floated towards the elevator.

“Wait,” Natasha shouted, just before the doors would close. “I’ll talk to Steve. He knows something has to give. Just tell Tony he needs to move if Steve does.”

The Cloak didn’t respond to that at all. The wounds Tony felt at her hand went deep, and the Cloak knew it had no right to try to help her mend it. That would be between her and Tony, if Tony allowed it.

She nodded to it and the elevator door finally closed.

Whew, the Cloak thought. That had been interesting.

“My privacy protocols say I’m not allowed to listen in on people’s conversations. Except Boss’. Is everything okay?” Friday asked.

The Cloak shrugged. It was tired after all that, and just wanted to lie down and rest with Stephen.  
Hopefully they were done. It really wanted its Stephen cuddle time.

*  
With a heating pad on his right hand and Tony’s chest under his head, Stephen hummed in contentment, teetering on the edge of sleep.

“How do you feel, baby?” Tony asked.

“Hmm, good,” Stephen said, a sleepy, lazy smile on his face.

“Not sore or anything?”

Stephen chuckled at that. “Well, a little. But in that good way. It _had_ been years, so I’m not worried about it.”

Tony kissed his temples, rubbed his nose against the grey. “How about your hand?”

“Better. Hopefully it’ll be alright by the morning. Or as alright as my hands ever get.”

“Boss, the Cloak is at your door,” Friday chimed in from Tony’s phone.

“Let it in, Friday.”

The Cloak zipped over to Stephen first, giving him a quick pet and then Tony. 

Then it dropped something hard and metal into Stephen’s lap.

“What do you have here?” Stephen asked, carefully picking the items up and examining them. “Wait a minute. Are these—“

“Those are Loki’s vambraces,” Tony said. “Thor’s have Loki’s horns on them. These are definitely Loki’s.” He looked to the Cloak with a look of suspicion and admiration. “How do you have them?”

The Cloak shrugged and helped Stephen put them on.

“Seriously, Cloak, what did you—ohhh,” Stephen moaned as he put the vambraces on his wrists. “Oh, these are mine now. Thank you, Cloak.” He sunk into the pillows with a beatific smile on his face. “For whatever you did.”

“Yeah, what did you do to get these?” Tony asked. “They look like they’re special.”

“They are,” Stephen said. “And magical.”

“And Loki just gave them up? No, no, no. What did you do?” Tony asked the Cloak.

The Cloak just shrugged and cuddled up to Stephen, looking like it was very happy to see him at the end of the evening. The embrace eventually grew to encompass Tony.

Tony took one look at the relief on Stephen’s face and mentally threw up his hands. “You know what? I don’t even care right now. I’m sure I’ll find out in the morning.”

Exhaustion that could only come from great emotional upheaval came over Tony. He ran his fingers through Stephen’s hair, soft after hours in bed had worked the product out of it. Stephen’s breaths were already deeper, relaxed, safe in Tony’s arms.

If you can’t beat ‘em…

Tony relaxed back into his pillow, and ran his left hand over the Cloak.

“Really, Red,” Tony whispered. “How did you get those things?”

The Cloak rubbed Tony’s nose with its collar.

Tony smiled. “You really love him.”

The Cloak nodded its collar, and its entire self seemed to vibrate with joy.

“Yeah,” he whispered. “Me too.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that was as fun to read as it was to write. This is honestly probably the most fun I've ever had writing a chapter of anything. The Cloak is just a joy. The next chapter will be up next week!


	15. The Calm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to the ironstrange discord server for ideas on Avengers monopoly and sorelion for the idea of ironstrange ice cream. This is such a lovely community, and I'm just having the best time writing the fic. Thank you to everyone who's commented or left kudos. Every comment just makes me so happy so thank you.

“Really not how I saw this morning going,” Tony said, squinting into his sensor. He read the energy output Stephen created while making his pocket dimension.

Or he was trying to, at least. Whatever energy Stephen was expending to create this little hole in space wasn’t coming up on any of his sensors. 

“Oh?” Stephen asked absently, his concentration on his spell.

“Yeah,” Tony said, hitting the sensor on the side one more time before giving up. “Figured we’d have a lie-in, get our cuddle on, I’d get to know your Elder Wand a little better—“

Stephen almost let his hands drop, the spell faltering for a split second. “My _Elder Wand_?”

“—I’d make you eggs, then we could go about our day,” Tony said, gesturing over Stephen’s shoulders. “But _someone’s_ Cloak let Loki into my workshop.”

Stephen made another mandala, just one step closer to a little space pocket being created in Tony’s workshop.

He couldn’t help the shudder.

“Excuse me, I’m not the one who gave it blanket permission to do anything it wanted,” Stephen said. 

“You bit me!” Tony pointed a finger in Stephen’s face. “Also, what was I supposed to do? There’s a beautiful man under me telling me not to stop.”

A softness came over Stephen that Tony had never seen before. At least not in such a casual setting. Stephen smiled and nodded, conceding the point.

“Yeah, well, I really couldn’t predict the Cloak would give the Power Stone to _Loki_ ,” Stephen said, glaring over his shoulder at said Cloak. “So, I suppose we were all surprised today.”

“Uh huh,” Tony said. He gave in to desire and wrapped an arm around Stephen’s waist. The mandalas moved with him, so Tony shook him a bit. For science. 

Stephen elbowed him in the gut.

“And whose fault is it that the Cloak got permission to give away one of the building blocks of all existence to a mischief god on probation?” Tony asked. 

“Yours, of course,” Stephen muttered, his voice low and husky. “For being so irresistible.”

“Oh, you know you’re in trouble,” Tony said with a laugh. “You really think that line’s gonna work?”

“Isn’t it?” Stephen smiled and waved a hand through the air. “Besides,” he said, smiling, “it’s just the Power Stone.”

“Just the Power Stone? Uh huh.” He pointed at Stephen’s shoulder. “Bad Cloak!” Tony said, waving a screwdriver at it. “Stole the Power Stone! No fabric softener.”

The Cloak waved at them like it’d like to see them try.

“Don’t be mad at the Cloak,” Stephen said, and left the mandalas hanging in midair for a moment so he could lean a little into Tony. He pressed a chaste kiss on Tony’s lips and said, “As much as I hate to admit it, it was doing what it thought was best.” He sighed and leaned back. “I really should have hidden it in a pocket dimension when we got back. Even if it had been in the Compound.”

“Please never say Loki was right again,” Tony said. “It makes my brain hurt. Also, how nice is it that I can do this—“ he said, kissing him deeply—“any time I want?”

“Boss,” Friday said. “Loki is trying to gain entrance to the workshop.”

“Okay, maybe not anytime I want. Let him in, Fri,” he said, then grimaced. “I seriously never thought this would happen.”

Stephen put up his hands and continued his work. “Loki coming into your workshop?” 

“Loki coming into my workshop _twice_.”

“Good morning, Stark, Strange,” Loki said, a twisted smile on his face. “Fabric.” 

Tony wasn’t sure how it was possible, but the Cloak somehow managed to wave at Loki _sarcastically_. It then made a show of shining the vambraces Stephen was wearing.

Loki’s eyes narrowed, but he said nothing. He was wearing a black on black suit, and his hair had been trimmed and brushed. 

“I’d heard you’d finally sorted yourselves,” Loki said, taking in how close Stephen and Tony were standing. “Gross.”

“And I heard you have something of mine,” Tony said, patting Stephen on the arm. Stephen finished the spell with a clap of his hands, and opened a tiny _fucking hole_ in space. Then they waited for Loki to do the same.

“Hardly. One of the most powerful objects in all of creation cannot belong to a mortal.” He twisted his hands, and the area between his palms turned green. A bright light shone, and a door opened to a pocket dimension. “It cannot belong to anyone, really.”

For a moment, Tony held his breath, certain that Loki would try to keep the stone for himself. That all of this crap with the Cloak had just been to get his hands on a second stone. 

The Power Stone left Loki’s pocket dimension and floated towards Stephen’s.

“Quickly now,” Loki said, floating the glowing purple stone from his own pocket dimension into the new one. “There. Satisfied?”

Stephen moved his hands in a series of quick motions before he looked to Tony and nodded. “It’s real,” he said.

As the hole in space closed, taking the Power Stone with it, Tony allowed himself a sigh of relief. “Gotta be honest, Snowflake. I’m kinda surprised you were willing to give it up,” Tony said.

That cold smile Loki liked to flash twisted his face, but Tony caught the haunted look in his eyes. It was nothing like how Loki had looked at him when he’d invaded New York: vicious and angry. This looked more like resigned and tired. 

“I admit, I was tempted,” Loki said. “But one stone is already so much. Two stones is too much for any one being. Even a god.” He looked at Stephen and said, “But especially for a back-water sorcerer.” With heavy footsteps, Loki approached Stephen and asked, ”Where are you going to put it now? You can’t have both the Time Stone and the Power Stone in your possession.”

For a long moment they just glared at each other, Tony standing between them, uncertain if he should call Thor or if he should just suit up. From one breath to the next, Stephen blinked and rolled his eyes.

“I don’t intend to,” Stephen said. “The Power Stone will stay here in the Compound with Tony, while the Time Stone is either with me or in the New York Sanctum.”

Loki’s eyes darted between them. “Neither of you are taking this as seriously as you should,” Loki said. “Thanos was only one warlord. Granted, he was the worst one, but he is only one of many. We must be more cautious.”

“Doesn’t Thor have access to that rainbow bridge of his?” Tony asked, arms crossed. “Why doesn’t he just use that? He puts the stone somewhere safe, makes it back for dinner?”

“And where would he put it, Stark?” Loki asked. “Asgard had dominion over the Nine Realms, but our reign has ended. Asgard is now a refugee state, and Thor and I are politically powerless. How could we possibly go to an ally and ask for the Power Stone to be left in their safe keeping?”

He turned to Stephen and said, “You need to get this stone off-world.”

Normally Tony would call any demand of Loki’s bullshit, but he knew Loki was right on this. Three Infinity Stones on Earth was too many; four was just begging for trouble.

A part of him wished he’d argued more for Quill to take the Power Stone with him when he’d left, but then neither of them had wanted to make the Benetar such a big target. Maybe by now they’d gotten the Reality Stone somewhere safe and could hightail it back to Earth for another grab and dash mission. 

Either way, it was a good excuse for Tony to try out the tech he’d created for the communicator Quill had left him. Plus, now that Tony and Stephen were officially together, maybe they could show Quill Earth the way it should be enjoyed. Maybe hit up someplace romantic. 

Like Vegas.

“Yeah, I’ll call Quill’s team,” Tony said. “Don’t you have a plane to catch?”

The sadistic smile was back, looking just a little more playful than its previous incarnation. “We’re taking Stormbreaker. I think Thor wants to remind you mortals who we are.” He shifted on his feet for a moment. “Will you be following later?”

“Yup. Impromptu family game night,” Tony said, pulling up the program that would run Quill’s communicator. 

At Loki’s curious look, Stephen said, “After everything that happened yesterday, we wanted to give Peter a little normality. You saw how he was. It really shook him to see us both so upset. I’ll get Tony to The Hague before your trial starts.”

“You gonna miss me?” Tony asked Loki.

Loki rolled his eyes and walked towards the elevator. “Like the pebble in my shoe.” As soon as he was gone, Tony started composing the message.

“How long will it take for the message to get to them?” Stephen asked.

“With my tech combined with Quill’s communicator? Depending where they are in the universe, two, maybe three days.”

“Amazing,” Stephen said, standing right behind him.

Tony sent the message and spun around, sitting back on his desk and pulling Stephen flush against him. “If you think that’s hot, wait till you see me with a hotel on Stark Tower.”

Snorting, Stephen spun away, walking towards the elevator himself. 

“Dream on. Those hotels are mine,” Stephen said, swaying a little as he walked. “Come on, I’m starving. I thought you were going to feed me eggs.”

“Well, not now,” Tony said, jogging to keep up with Stephen’s long legs. “Why don’t you portal us somewhere for brunch?”

Stephen’s smile faltered a bit. “I really should get back to the Sanctum soon. Wong’s going to be pissed I was gone for an entire day.”

Tony shrugged. “We can go somewhere near there, then I’ll walk you over. I’m a gentleman like that.” He smiled but Stephen didn’t smile back.

_Oh._

“Is it—“ Tony started, but wasn’t sure how to phrase the question. Now that the issue of their relationship had been settled, Tony hadn’t considered how they would present themselves to the world. “Was Coney Island too much for you? Or…I mean, we haven’t talked about it since…damn, it really was only yesterday. But did you want to go ahead and call a press conference, say we’re not together?” 

He understood, really he did. It wasn’t that Stephen was rejecting him, but being in a relationship with Tony _and_ in the public eye would be a lot of pressure. If Stephen wanted to deny he was with Tony publicly, Tony would understand.

Really.

A shaking hand came up to cup his jaw.

_Fear_

Tony met his eyes, and it was like he was drowning in uncertainty. Then Stephen’s back went straighter and he nodded to himself.

“There’s a place around the corner from the Sanctum, does a great poached egg. I’d like to take you there,” Stephen said.

Tony gently placed his hand on Stephen’s.

“You sure? It doesn’t have to mean anything if you aren’t. Seriously, Doc. I get it.” And he did, even if it still hurt a little. Dumb feelings.

“Are you still afraid of portals?” Stephen asked.

“No,” Tony lied.

Stephen lifted an eyebrow.

“Okay, yeah, but I’m getting there.” He rocked a bit on his heels. “Little by little. And it’s different when it’s with you. Really.”

“It’s the same thing, Tony. I’m afraid of people looking at me and knowing everything about me instantly. But I want to be able to have breakfast with you. Okay?”

Tony exhaled. Fear, he could deal with. Fear was definitely something he understood.

He swallowed it as he stepped through the portal Stephen created, instantly finding himself in the Village.

*

The little cafe around the corner from the Sanctum was a favorite of his and Wong’s. Whenever they had the money for it, one or the other would pick up a breakfast plate for them to share. On extremely rare occasions, Stephen would allow himself to sit in the booth by the window with a cup of tea and watch as people walked by.

The wait staff didn’t know him by name, but they always nodded and smiled at him when he came in.

And now he was coming by, hand-in-hand, with Tony Stark. 

They exited the portal into an alleyway close to the Sanctum. Stephen took his time closing it, before turning around to give Tony a nervous smile.

“Seriously, Stephen, we don’t have to do this.” Tony squeezed his hand gently. “At least not today. We could always think about it, do it later. I’m fine, really.”

And Tony would be, Stephen knew. Tony knew how Stephen loved him, both because of the bond and because Stephen tried his hardest to show Tony every day. But Stephen had no intention of denying that love. Not to himself, and not to the world.

He took a deep breath and shook Tony’s hand in his.

“You promised me breakfast,” he said. 

Tony nodded and led him out of the alley.

Normally when Stephen left the Sanctum, he would wear street clothes. He didn't want to draw attention to himself, and even if this was the Village, his robes and Cloak would be noticeable. With all the worries about being out publicly with Tony, Stephen had forgotten he was dressed like…

Well.

“Oh my God, it’s Doctor Strange,” said the very first person they encountered when they exited the alley.

Stephen sighed. Oh, well. There was nothing to do about it now. “Good morning,” he said. The person just stood there with his mouth open while someone else took Stephen’s picture. At no point did anyone mention anything about Tony.

“Oh, and look who he’s with!” Tony said in a playful tone. “It’s Tony Stark!”

“Oh my God, that is Tony Stark,” said another person walking by.

“Why?” Stephen said, walking quickly to their destination, which was only a block away.

“That’s the first time in a decade someone else was noticed before me. I panicked.”

“You _want_ to be noticed?” Stephen asked.

“I mean, not exactly. It’s more something I’m completely used to. Plus, I love New York.” He waved around with his free hand. “No one really cares all that much about who you are.”

“Is that Doctor Strange?” Stephen overheard from a bus stop. “Oh look, he’s wearing new vambraces,” said another.

“Uh huh,” Stephen said.

“You know, if you wanted to blend in a little more, you could have dressed in street clothes,” Tony said. “You don’t see me wearing the armor.”

“No, but you’re wearing the nanoparticles,” Stephen said, reaching over to tap them.

“And you’re wearing a Cloak.”

The Cloak waved its collar at them.

“Not that that’s a bad thing, Red.”

The Cloak flicked Tony’s nose, then went still again.

“You want to change?” Tony asked.

Stephen sighed, then realized they were already outside the cafe. 

“No,” Stephen said. “We’ll be making the announcement soon. Plus, everyone’s already seen me in this tunic and the Cloak. Might as well embrace it.”

“That’s my man,” Tony said, then kissed him chastely. 

He knew it was impossible, but Stephen swore he could hear a hundred camera phones go off.

He took a deep breath, squeezed Tony’s hand as hard as he could, and exhaled.

_Let them._

The bravest, most amazing man in the world was holding his hand, declaring to everyone that he’d chosen Stephen. Let everyone see, Stephen decided. Let the world see him walk with Tony Stark.

Tony let go of his hand to open the door for him.

The modest cafe looked just a little brighter when he walked in. “For two please,” Stephen told the hostess, a young woman who had helped him many times before. Her eyes went a bit wide, but she nodded.

“I thought that was you when I saw the picture,” she said as she walked them to the table by the window that Stephen preferred. “Oh,” she said, looking at the large window, then back at the two of them. “Would you prefer something in the back?”

The window seat was the best seat in the house, but Stephen already saw people looking in as they passed, some taking pictures. By now, someone would have already posted their image and location on social media. He imagined another professional photographer was already on their way to the cafe.

“This is fine with me,” Tony said, looking to him for confirmation. 

“This is where I sit when I come in. They have a nice herbal blend you should try,” Stephen said, sitting down.

“Gross,” Tony said. “Coffee, black.” He smiled at the hostess, and she walked away blushing.

His hands were feeling much better today. He had no problem picking up the menu, knowing that Tony was picking up the check. Definitely extra bacon for both him and Wong.

“What are you getting?” Tony asked, not bothering to look at the menu.

“Probably the same thing I always get: poached eggs, extra bacon,” Stephen said. “And one for Wong, too,” he said, pointedly.

Tony put an arm on the back of the booth and spread out a bit. “Honey, if you want I can buy this whole diner.”

“Let’s not go quite that far,” Stephen said. 

Their server, a young man named Tim, came by then and delivered their drinks and took their orders. 

Tim shifted on his feet and tapped his order pad, and Stephen knew he had something he’d wanted to say to them. Stephen had known Tim for a while, and doubted it would be anything negative. He waited for him to speak. 

Finally, right when Stephen was worried he would explode if he kept it in any longer, Tim said to Stephen, “Can I just tell you, on behalf of the entire staff, that we’re so proud of you.”

Tony looked up through his glasses. The look on his face was nonchalant, not quite that forced casual annoyed look he’d sported with the Rogue Avengers yesterday, but similar enough.

“Oh?”

“Yes, coming out the way you did just gave us all so much hope. Everyone was so excited that we knew you,” he said to Stephen. “And Mr. Stark, you’re the world’s greatest hero.”

“Technically I came out in the 90s,” Tony said, taking a sip of his coffee. “But thanks. I’m glad if it helped.”

“You have no idea,” he said.

“Thank you, Tim,” Stephen said.

“Thank _you_ , Doctor Strange. You know, all the message boards are calling on you two to lead the Pride parade this year.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Tony said.

“Really?” Stephen said. “I thought that would be right up your alley. You could paint the suit pink, blue, and purple.”

“Only if you dye the Cloak first,” Tony said. The Cloak shook its collar at the notion. “No, I just don’t know about actual Pride. It’s kinda corporate.”

“So are you,” Stephen said, not missing a beat.

“Oh, damn,” said a diner from another table, caught listening in.

Tony just threw his head back and laughed. “You see the abuse I put up with?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Stephen saw a young man put up an A-frame sign in front of the shop next door. Stephen saw him look directly at Tony, then adjust the sign a bit. 

Tim left, saying their food would be out in a few minutes.

“So, eggs,” Tony said, sipping his coffee. 

“Yes?” Stephen asked.

“Did you have chickens in Nebraska?”

Stephen frowned. That was an odd question. “Why do you ask?”

“Because I feel like for all I know everything important, I still don’t know very much about you.” Tony rested his cheek on his palm, elbow on the table. “You know, little things. I know you prefer tea, I know you love ice cream.”

“Everyone loves ice cream.”

“But I don’t know how you grew up, who was your first kiss, how’d you learn how to drive.”

Stephen couldn’t help his smile. Tony was right. As much as they knew each other on a level that transcended the soul, there was a lot Tony didn’t know about Stephen. And Stephen only knew a lot about Tony because he’d been in the public eye since he’d been a child.

“We did have chickens,” Stephen said, and sipped his tea. He winced and added a squeeze of lemon. “I had one chicken that I unfortunately grew attached to. Named her Pennyfeather.”

“That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard,” Tony said, reaching over the table to grab Stephen’s hand. “Do I want to know what happened to Pennyfeather?”

“No,” Stephen said. “My father was probably a bigger asshole than yours.”

“That’s quite a competition,” Tony said.

“And no real winner,” Stephen said. He sipped his tea, much smoother now. For a moment, he let himself look out the window. Everyone mostly just walked by, not looking inside. There was the occasional person who did a double, then triple take at Doctor Strange and Iron Man eating brunch.

He let himself relax further into the booth’s cushions. People watching and drinking tea in this diner always brought Stephen a simple kind of joy. It was no different now. It was even greater, he thought, with Tony here.

“Rebecca Pokowsky,” Stephen said after a few minutes of silence.

Tony squinted for a moment, then realized Stephen was answering his earlier question. “Aww,” Tony said. “Please tell me you learned to drive on a tractor. I’ll be so disappointed if you tell me otherwise.”

“I learned to drive on a tractor,” Stephen said.

“Really?” Tony said, excited.

“No,” Stephen said. “A 1988 Crown Victoria.”

Tony hissed. “That’s like driving a tank. I’m pretty sure that car could give the suit a run for its money.”

“Hmm,” Stephen hummed, thinking back on that old car. It was one of the few things he had missed when he’d left his old life behind him. “How about you? Let me guess. A Ferrari.”

“So wrong. A 1984 Lamborghini Countach. Cherry red, drove like a dream. You know, once I could actually drive it.”

“1984? You would’ve been…”

“Fourteen,” Tony said. He fiddled with his napkin, then took another sip of coffee. “It was the summer before I went to MIT. One of the few father-son things my dad and I ever did together.” He tapped the edge of the table with his spoon, and Stephen could hear his foot tapping under the table. “It was a decent summer. Better than most.”

‘It was decent’ could have probably been a tagline for Tony and Stephen’s lives. And yet here they were, two broken old men who finally found joy and love with each other. It was so unlikely, but it had happened. After all the doubt, all of Stephen’s self-loathing, and Tony uncertainty, they were finally here.

In a diner, people-watching, waiting for their breakfast.

Living.

Overwhelmed with the beauty of it all, Stephen again reached across the table for Tony’s hand. Tony met Stephen’s smile with his own, sensing through their bond where Stephen’s thoughts had gone. He smiled so widely it transformed his entire face, making it impossible to ever look away.

“When are you going to teach Peter to drive?” Stephen asked.

“What, I—“ Tony said, then snapped his mouth shut. “Oh,” he said softly. “Yeah, I could teach him how to drive. Or maybe May would want to. I should probably check to see how she feels about it. Don’t want to step on her toes. But I could help!” He was already planning on how to do it, Stephen could tell. His mind must have been going a mile a minute, trying to determine the safest but also most fun car Peter could drive.

“I’m sure May wouldn’t mind some help,” Stephen said, then smiled at Tim who was delivering their food.

“And I’ll have the extra plate wrapped up for you in a minute,” Tim said.

“Take your time,” Tony said, moaning around his eggs. “Oh, these are good.”

“Mmm,” Stephen said. A good poached egg really was hard to come by.

“We’re coming here again,” Tony said, munching on his bacon. “So what are you up today, at least before I force you to file for bankruptcy?”

“Keep dreaming, Stark,” Stephen said. In all seriousness, Stephen had lost a day in his research as to what had happened to Zoso and his students. He needed to report his findings to the elder sorcerers and check to see about his training schedule. So, unless he actually found something concrete, it was looking to be a pretty boring day.

“Research, mostly,” he said to summarize. “Then reporting the results to the elders. Nothing as exciting as punching a super soldier in the face.”

“Oh, but that was so great though. Except that now I have to go back to the Compound and somehow attempt to live in the same building as that guy.” Tony leaned back into the booth. “I don’t know how this is going to work, Doc.”

Stephen completely agreed but lifted an eyebrow—his mouth full of bacon—to ask the obvious question.

Tony sighed. “Half the team doesn’t trust the other half, and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change anytime soon.”

Stephen looked around the room, nearly every person there pretending not to listen in. He created a sigil to not allow their words to travel. Tony lifted an eyebrow and Stephen gestured at the very nosey diner patrons sitting around them.

“I wish I had some words of wisdom for you, but I don’t.” Stephen contemplated his toast for a moment, then said, “I think it’s good that we’ve built an alliance with Thor and Loki. They’re both extremely powerful, good to have a warrior god and another magic user on our side. Especially considering…”

“Maximoff,” Tony said with a scoff. “I couldn’t believe she tried that crap with my necklace. God, I was so freaked out. Thought I was gonna have a breakdown right there.” He paused, had another bite of egg. “But then that shield I always see you use just popped into existence. It was like…instant relief. I saw that, I knew I’d be okay in the end.”

“Everything _will_ be okay,” Stephen said. “If anyone tries to damage that thing, I’ll know. And I’ll be with you in an instant. I promise.”

“Thanks, baby.” Tony scooped up the last of his eggs with some toast, then saw Tim coming with Wong’s food. “Well, I’m done. You ready?”

“Mmm,” Stephen said, taking his last sip of tea. “Yes, I suppose I should get back to it.”

“Want to play hooky for another day?”

“Want? Yes. Can I? No, not at all.”

Tony took out a hundred-dollar bill and left it on the table. Then he gave another to Tim and another to the hostess. 

They left the cafe with cries of ‘Thank you, Mr. Stark’ ringing behind them. 

“You love doing that, don’t you?” Stephen asked.

“What?” Tony asked innocently.

“The overtipping. Making someone’s day. Being the hero.”

“Baby,” Tony said, looking at Stephen over his sunglasses. “I am the hero.”

They took a few steps towards the Sanctum before they noticed the sign the shopkeeper next door put up.

It was a sign for Ben and Jerry’s and it said, “Come in and try our new Doctor Strange Swirl.”

And under it said, “Or try the best new combo: Stark Raving Hazelnut and Strange Swirl together!” 

“Oh my God!” Tony laughed. “Yes, just…yes! I want one. Stephen, come on. Let me get you one. I know you love my ice cream.”

“I do not,” Stephen said, protesting.

“You do, you know you do.” He took Stephen’s hand and dragged him into the ice cream shop, where it seemed like most of the staff had been waiting for them.

It was still early enough that the shop was fairly empty, most people not getting ice cream right after breakfast. Three young, excited kids popped up from behind the counter with stars in their eyes. 

“Mr. Stark, Doctor Strange! We’re so glad you came in,” said a slightly older looking young lady. “Would you like to try our new flavor combo? They go really great together.” She turned a bright shade of red as she got one scoop of each flavor in a small cup, then handed it to Tony.

“Of course we do,” Tony said, holding out a hand to take the ice cream. “Come on, Stephen, don’t you want to see what you taste like?” A girl behind the counter squeaked. 

Tony put a spoonful in his mouth and moaned in delight. “Baby, it’s really good. I wouldn’t lie to you. You’ll love it.”

Stephen had no doubt he would. With an eye on the staff, Stephen let Tony feed him a spoonful of their combined flavors.

“Mmm,” he moaned. It really was good.

“Can we get a picture for our wall?” one of the staff asked.

“Absolutely!” Tony said.

Stephen still had ice cream in his mouth when they took it. It was an old-fashioned polaroid, and on the bottom they wrote #ironstrange.

*

They walked hand-in-hand to the Sanctum, Stephen’s belly and heart full. The weather was perfect, there were no great threats to face today, Tony was holding his hand, and they would have family game night tonight.

Everything was perfect.

“I’ll see you at May and Peter’s tonight?” Tony asked, rocking up and down on his toes, obviously planning on planting a sneaky kiss on Stephen.

Stephen beat him to it.

Tony gasped into the kiss, then wrapped his arms around Stephen, obviously extremely surprised Stephen had started a kiss like this in public. 

When Tony pulled away, he cocked an eyebrow questioningly.

“The Sanctum is spelled for privacy. Anyone who doesn’t have business here will have trouble finding it. That’s why Wong and I were so surprised when all those packages started arriving all those weeks ago.”

Tony laughed and then said, “And that explains why we had to pay a delivery person to track this place down with a bloodhound.”

“You did not,” Stephen said.

“Well, almost.”

Stephen laughed softly one more time, then opened the door to the Sanctum.

“I’ll see you tonight, Tony.”

“And I’ll see you, Stephen…in jail.”

“Let the best genius win.”

*

“Mr. Stark,” Peter said. He was concentrating on his hands, fingers twisting in his lap. “I respect you. You know I do. You’ve done so much for me, and we’ve been through heck together. But I don’t think you’ve given this enough consideration.”

Tony leaned back in his chair. He took off his glasses. “How so?”

“Did he just say ‘heck?’” Stephen asked Ned.

“This…sort of thing. It can tear families apart,” Peter said softly. “And I know you’ve seen your share of tragedy, but I would really hate for…well, anything to come between us.” Peter put his hands on the table, his eyes begging Tony to listen. “Please, please don’t do this.”

“Kid,” Tony said, handing Stephen the Hulk. “It’s Monopoly. Not the Civil War.”

“Why are you giving me the Hulk?” Stephen asked, turning the same figure over in his hand. 

“That’s the best one after Iron Man,” Tony said, tossing his own game piece in the air, then catching it. “And I am Iron Man.”

“I didn’t even know they made Avengers Monopoly,” May said, examining the pieces left over. “I’m Black Widow.”

“You could be,” Tony said, winking at May over his glasses.

Stephen and May both rolled their eyes in complete synchrony. That settled it, Stephen thought. Tony’s default mode with some people really was ‘flirt.’

“I’m War Machine,” said Ned, picking up Rhodey. Flapjack jumped from his lap to the floor.

Peter picked up Thor’s piece and set it at the ‘Avengers Assemble’ starting point.

“I’m so telling Thor he got picked last,” Tony said to Stephen.

“I don’t think he’ll know what that means,” Stephen said. “He’s a prince. I doubt he’s ever been picked last at anything in his life.”

“Still,” Tony said. 

The smell of cheeseburgers from some hole-in-the-wall Tony swore by had Stephen’s stomach growling. He’d forgotten to eat lunch, but what with having had a late breakfast, he figured he’d be okay.

The glare Tony sent his way at the rumbling of his stomach said otherwise. He passed him a cheeseburger and fries, then gave the bag to May to pass to the kids.

There was another smaller bag on the table, which Stephen discovered was full of ketchup and mustard and…

“Oh…” Stephen said in wonder, then proceeded to dump Ranch dressing all over his fries. It had been a while since he’d indulged, and he savored each taste. He may have even licked his fingers at some point.

A few bites in, he realized the table had gone quiet. In another household, that might not be noticeable, but he was currently sitting at a table with two talkative teenagers and Tony Stark.

Stephen opened his eyes (not really knowing when he’d closed them), and saw the table staring at him. Except for Tony, who was giving him an ear-to-ear smile.

“Oh my God,” he said. “What are you eating?”

Stephen chewed and swallowed before he said, “Dinner?”

“Are you dipping your fries in Ranch dressing?” He slammed his hand on the table. “I knew it. I knew some part of the Midwest hadn’t worn off.”

Stephen could tell his face was turning red, but that wouldn’t stop him from enjoying one of his few guilty pleasures.

“It’s no different from drowning your fries in ketchup, Tony,” May said, dipping a fry.

“Uh, no. It’s really different. Hey, Doc, at the next party do want us to get one of those chocolate fountains, but instead of chocolate and strawberries, it’s Ranch dressing and fried potatoes?”

Stephen couldn’t help how his eyes went wide at the mere thought of it.

Tony doubled over in laughter.

May punched him in the arm, and Stephen saluted her with a fry.

“Okay, are you going to keep making fun of Doctor Dad?” Peter said, divvying up the money between the five of them. “Or are you going to play? Or maybe you’re afraid of the thunder you’ve just unleashed?” 

Tony smiled sweetly at Peter. “I’m shaking in my boots, kid.”

Three hours later, Stephen had four hotels on Stark Tower, and May, Peter, and Ned had formed what could only be referred to as an axis of evil.

Whereas Tony had two utilities, a few houses in the Bronx, Captain America’s Brooklyn Gymnasium, and had been to jail three times.

“No doubles, no doubles, no doubles,” Tony said, rolling. 

It came up double sixes.

“Come on!”

“Oh no!” Peter said, putting his hands on his cheeks in fake dismay.

“Don’t even pretend, kid,” Tony said, moving his little Iron Man piece to jail.

“I’m not. You can’t land on our property if you’re in jail, Mr. Stark.”

“By the Vishanti,” Stephen said, in honest dismay. “Where is our sweet, innocent little Peter?”

“He’s dead,” Peter said, not missing a beat. “I killed him and won the Avengers dance-off.”

He held up a card that showed the Hulk doing the two-step that said such.

“Damn kid, maybe you should intern for Pepper instead. I didn’t realize you could be this vicious,” Tony said. Stephen realized he was joking, but the playfully harsh smile that had been on Peter’s face disappeared in a heartbeat.

The table instantly sobered.

Stephen softened his voice and extended a shaking hand across the game board. “Peter, Tony’s just playing.”

“What?” Tony asked, confused. He took one good look at Peter and understood. “Oh, kid, no. Never. You’re not getting rid of your old man. You’re stuck with me, okay?”

May put a hand on Peter’s shoulder, and gave him a little shake. “Peter, he was kidding. It’s all in good fun, right?”

Peter nodded, but he was obviously still shaken. For the first time, Stephen wondered how deep were the roots of Peter’s insecurity about being left by the people he loved. He’d known Peter cared deeply about him and Tony, had made it very obvious he saw them both as his father figures.

Stephen had embraced Peter, loved the little family they were forming, and couldn’t be more content. But did Peter still wonder about his place with them?

The Cloak left Stephen’s shoulders, floated over to Peter, and wrapped him up in its embrace.

“I’m okay,” Peter said, with a fake smile. “Really. I know Mr. Stark was joking. It’s okay.”

Knowing this would be something that would be bothering Peter if it wasn’t resolved, Stephen said, “Peter, I’m thirsty. Would you go get me some water from the kitchen?”

The scrap of a chair screeched through the silence as Peter got up to get the water.

“I think I left my phone in the kitchen,” Tony said, barely waiting a heartbeat before going after Peter. He tapped Stephen’s shoulder as he passed by.

Hopefully that would allow the two of them to air some of their insecurities. The Vishanti knew Stephen had so many, and that sort of poison could only be expunged by talking it out.

“I’m really glad you two sorted things out,” May said. 

Stephen frowned at her for a moment, uncertain as to what she meant.

“Just…Peter said you two had finally figured things out?” May said, looking more uncertain the more she talked. “He seemed pretty relieved when he came home today.”

“Yeah, Peter’s a lot happier lately than he has been,” Ned said. “You and Mr. Stark are good for him.”

_Oh._

“I’m glad you both think so. He’s good for me and Tony, too.”

“Speaking of Tony, I wonder what they could possibly be getting up to,” he said quickly. “I think I’ll check on them. Excuse me,” Stephen said, getting up. 

He lingered in the doorway to the kitchen for a moment, overhearing Tony say, “I’m sorry if I made you think something different. As far as I’m concerned, you’re our kid. You’re welcome at the Compound any time, you’re welcome in my home always. That’s for life, Peter.”

A muffled sniff had Stephen turning the corner and entering the room without another thought. Peter’s eyes brimmed with tears, and he sniffed a bit before noticing Stephen standing there. He quickly wiped his eyes with his shirt sleeve.

There had been too much emotional upheaval in the last forty-eight hours. Stephen wasn’t sure he could bear to see Peter cry in front of him. 

Peter must have read his expression wrong because he sniffed again and said, “I’m sorry.”  
Stephen took a step forward. “Oh, Peter, the world became so much brighter the day I met you,” he said. “I can’t believe how incredibly lucky I am.” He laced his fingers into Tony’s and threw an arm around Peter’s shoulders. “I haven’t had a family in a very long time. I’m not going to give it up for anything.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, with awe and happiness in his voice. “A family. Okay, Pete?”

Peter sniffed once more then nodded.

“Aww,” said May from the doorway of the kitchen. Not wanting to be left out, May’s eyes were tearing up too, her glasses only magnifying them. “I’m sorry, I just—“ She fanned her face, obviously trying to keep from crying. “Peter’s missed Ben for so long, and then you two show up and he…”

“Come here, May,” Tony said, waving May over. Once she reached Peter she broke into tears. 

Carrying a heavy weight on a daily basis for a very long time was something that Stephen could identify with. As May grabbed hold of Peter, sobbing into his hair, Stephen imagined he could almost see the burden lift off her shoulders.

*

An hour later, tears dried, and Monopoly board put away, Stephen stood with Tony in his room at the Compound, Tony putting on his cuff links to get ready for Loki’s trial.

“You could have really destroyed me at the end there,” Tony said. “Four hotels on Stark Tower, me down to my last thousand bucks.” Tony straightened his tie and adjusted his glasses. “Don’t try to tell me the dice landed that way by accident.”

Maybe they didn’t, but Stephen would never tell the others that. Even after the air had been cleared and they’d returned to the game, there was something about how everyone had just naturally ganged up against Tony that had Stephen pause.

Of course, there were be several reasons for that, he thought. It turned out Peter had a naturally competitive nature when it came to Monopoly. Plus, there was a certain irony to taking down a multibillionaire in a game involving real estate and money. And there had been the way Tony had been so sure of himself.

All of those things were true. And yet still, Stephen had paused. 

It was silly, he knew. When they’d made their promises to each other, Stephen knew they hadn’t included _board games_. To say otherwise would be ridiculous. 

And yet he had subtly changed Tony’s throw to avoid his hotels. Not because he thought Tony would be hurt by losing. And not because the promise he’d made obligated him to.

Still, the anthem _Team Stark_ rang in his ear.

And he’d learned not to dismiss his instincts.

“I have no idea what you mean,” Stephen finally said.

“Uh huh. The kids and May still wiped the floor with us.”

“What us?” Stephen asked. “I had four hotels on Stark Tower.”

“Exactly! Stark Tower. You’re welcome,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around Stephen’s waist.

“Hmm,” Stephen said, then kissed him, melting into his arms like he’d wanted to all night. “Are you sure you don’t need any sleep?”

“Nah, it’s actually better this way. The trial shouldn’t take all that long. I’ll sleep when I come back.” He poked Stephen on the chest. “You can make sure of it.”

“Lucky me,” Stephen said, then stepped aside to create a portal right in front of The Hague. Reporters all stopped talking to their cameras as they noticed the portal, then saw Tony walk through and into the Netherlands, seeming to appear out of thin air.

“Thanks, babe. I’ll call you,” Tony said over his shoulder.

Stephen scoffed. Tony knew exactly what he was doing. He closed the portal to The Hague, then created one to the Sanctum.

It felt like it had been ages since he’d been home. The Cloak flew off his shoulders, and Stephen used magic to undo his belts and boots. 

“Phone,” he said with a yawn. “Please make sure to put Tony’s call right through. Don’t stop ringing until I’ve woken up.”

“Yes, Doctor Strange,” the phone said.

“Thank you.” He took off the rest of his clothes, down to his shorts, then got into bed. The Cloak waved his toothbrush in front of his face, but he was too tired.

“I promise my teeth won't fall out of my head if I miss one night. Come to bed.”

The Cloak zipped off to put the toothbrush away, then nestled down on top of Stephen. 

It wasn’t often he was gifted with a day like today, Stephen thought as he drifted off. With warmth in his heart, he fell into a deep, restful sleep.

*

A few hours later, Stephen woke to the Cloak poking him in the eye. Repeatedly. 

“Doctor Strange,” the phone said from his bedside table. “Mr. Stark is calling. He says it is urgent.”

Stephen went from half-asleep to completely awake in about point five seconds. 

_Terror_

_Panic_

_Fear_

“Put him on speakerphone.”

“Stephen!” Tony screamed. “Stephen, get over here! Please!”

Ice stabbed at his heart like a knife at hearing Tony’s distress.

“Where are you?”

“The Compound! Thor managed to get us here after The Hague, but Stephen—“

Stephen was only half-listening, using magic to dress and the Cloak handing him his sling ring. He created a portal to the Compound and stepped through.

It was like stepping into a war zone. Tony was completely suited up, Thor had Stormbreaker high in the sky, but—aside from a strong wind—didn’t appear to be using it. But Loki…

Loki looked deranged.

“Do you think I can be contained?” Loki shouted into the wind. “Do you think I am a lesser Loki? You know nothing, brother!”

“What happened?” Stephen screamed at Tony, trying to be heard over Thor’s wind. 

“Nothing!” Tony’s face plate receded. He looked tired and frightened, but unhurt. “The sentencing went exactly as planned! Loki was sentenced to community service as an Avenger for five hundred years. The judge—“

“You call those decrepit old men judges! Those were no judges, Stark!” Loki said, throwing green flame into the night sky.

Thor squinted into the green mist, drawing the wind towards Loki. Through the dark of night and kicked up grass and dirt, Stephen saw figures moving towards them from the Compound.

_Oh, no._

“Tony,” he said, gesturing to Steve Rogers and Wanda Maximoff as they ran towards Loki.

“Shit," Tony muttered. The nanoparticles reformed his face plate. “Thor! We’ve got incoming!”

“Only the Norns can bring judgement upon me! There is no one else worthy!”

“Brother,” Thor shouted through the wind, still trying to reason with Loki, attempting to calm his madness. “Please, come and talk to me. I know you are hurting—“

“Hurting? How could a mortal hurt me?” Loki shouted over the wind. His face was paler than normal and twisted in anger. “No mortal can hurt me, I am a god! And the mortals who attempted to _pass judgement_ on me today—”

He was cut off as Roger’s shield bounced off his head, stopping his shouting for a moment but little else. Stephen rolled his eyes and wondered how Rogers thought that would end.

Then his heart stopped as red mist flowed out of Maximoff’s hands. He had no desire to have a magical standoff with her today, especially with Loki being so unhinged.

Thunder boomed and lightning screamed across the sky as Thor finally wielded Stormbreaker like the weapon it was. He stood in front of Maximoff, a living god-shield between her and Loki, and spoke to her in a voice that was too low for Stephen to hear.

“Loki,” Stephen started, but Loki jumped back, looking lost for a moment. Like he wasn’t entirely sure of where he was. 

“Oh…” Stephen whispered. Thor hadn’t gone into detail about what had happened to Loki prior to his invasion of New York, but he and Tony had gotten the general idea. Knowing what Loki had gone through definitely explained his reactions to being judged by people who had no idea about his past. 

“They don’t know what it was like,” Loki hissed. “They didn’t know what he was capable of. The pain and the threats. And then a gentle sort of hope that maybe it will stop.”

He unleashed another green beam of power at Stephen, who deflected it.

“But it never stopped,” Loki said, his voice hoarse from shouting over the wind. “Never.”

“Loki, we know…” Tony said.

“I was not myself!” he screamed. “I didn’t want to do those things! Thanos…”

“Hey, it’s okay, Snowflake,” Tony said, trying to get closer to Loki. “They might not know the full story now, but they will. We’ll tell everyone what really happened, I promise. Whenever you want.” Tony inched forward slowly. “You just need to stop the light show.”

Loki shook his head, tears streaming down his face. “They will not listen. Asgard never listened to me. Why should they? Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t raze this new place to the ends of the Earth?”

Stephen knew that look in Loki’s eyes. He was close to giving up, close to doing something that would be unforgivable, something he couldn’t take back. And he wasn’t certain he could be talked down.

Loki had helped him twice in the past few days. Stephen figured he’d return the favor.

He lifted his hands and made the gesture that summoned the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak. He would bind Loki for his own protection, only for a moment so he could calm himself. And so Rogers and Maximoff could see he was no longer a threat. Then once Thor had gotten through to him, Stephen would release him.

He cast the spell towards Loki.

But nothing happened. 

A crushing shroud of fear fell over Stephen, like walking outside into a hail storm. He recast the spell, but it still produced no result. The Cloak was jittery on his shoulders. He’d mastered this spell years ago. It was an intermediate spell at best. He’d used these bands on Thanos _and_ on Loki in the past few months.

And now they weren’t working.

“What’s wrong with him?” Loki asked, his voice slightly clearer than it had been a moment ago. “What is he doing?”

“I don’t know,” Tony said. “Stephen, baby, are you okay?”

“No,” Stephen said automatically as he tried to perform the spell for a third time. “My spell won’t work.”

“That’s because you’re a terrible sorcerer,” Loki said, his tone of voice exhausted but more coherent now. 

“No,” Stephen shouted in a panic. “I perform this spell often. I know this spell. And it isn’t not working properly, it isn’t working at all.”

Finally, Loki seemed to take the issue seriously. His shoulders fell, and the green light faded from his hands. The haze of anger and pain that had shrouded his eyes left him, and he slumped like a puppet with cut strings.

“What spell are you failing to cast?” Loki asked. 

Stephen gaped at him for a moment. “You don’t draw magic from other dimensions! You wouldn’t know this spell!”

Loki crossed his arms. “I am fifteen hundred years old. There is no chance I’m unfamiliar with whatever spell you’re mucking up.”

“The Crimson Bands of Cyttorak,” Stephen said.

“Alright, fine,” Loki said, “I don’t know that spell.”

“Guys, can we focus here?” Tony asked, looking between them and the others still talking with Thor. “What’s wrong with Stephen?”

“I have no idea!” Stephen shouted.

“You’re probably being lazy with the hand movements,” Loki said flippantly. “Show me the spell, and I’ll help you correct it.”

“I’m not letting you into my house,” Stephen said automatically, thinking of all the relics and books and _Wong_ that were in the Sanctum.

“I’ve already been in your house, Strange,” Loki said with a sneer. “Or don’t you remember?”

“Ugh,” Stephen grunted. He hadn’t remembered. “Fine,” Stephen said, putting on his sling ring. For a moment he hesitated, worried that his ring might not work. That magic had somehow failed him, or maybe the other way around.

Taking a deep breath, he thought of the Ancient One stranding him on Everest and created a portal to the Sanctum library.

He exhaled. The magic hadn’t left him. 

“I’ll be right back, Thor!” Loki cried out. Thor turned from his standoff with Rogers and Maximoff with a baffled ‘brother?’

Stepping into the quiet library after the wind, rain, and thunder nearly threw Stephen off balance. He reached back to lead Tony through the portal, only to find he had walked through directly after him.

The gesture warmed him, even through his confusion and panic.

“You call this a library?” Loki said. Now that Stephen could see Loki up close, he noticed how red his eyes were, how his hands were shaking slightly, how his voice trembled. “My closet in Asgard had more books than this.”

“Did it also have clothing in a color other than green and black?” Tony asked. At Stephen’s _look_ , Tony said, “What? It’s a valid question. I’ve literally never seen him in anything other than green or black. Is it a curse? Did you lose a bet?”

With a long, drawn out sigh, Loki turned back to Stephen. “Show me the book, and I’ll show you how you’re messing it up.” He turned to look at the shelves of books. “Please tell me you know where it is, and we don’t have to wait around for you to find it.”

“I know exactly where it is, and I haven’t messed it up. I have an eidetic memory,” Stephen said, going to the Sanctum’s copy of the Book of Ancient Scrolls. “I even know the page number. Page fifty-three.”

The scent of old books always infused a sense of calm in Stephen in a way few other things ever had. The books from the Sanctum were very old, and the scent of them was comforting in ways Stephen couldn’t describe.

That smell had been present when he’d found a new purpose after his accident. It had been there when he’d found his life’s second calling. It had brought him knowledge and the ability to protect his reality, his universe, and now Tony, his bondmate.

But the smell of old books did nothing to curtail his terror, his absolute panic, at opening the Book of Ancient Scrolls, only to find the pages blank.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. 
> 
> If anyone wants to speculate, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	16. Intergalatic Road Trip

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone commented on the last chapter. This fic is so special to me, and I really appreciate each and every one. Also, the amount of guessing and theorizing on what's going on is giving me _life_. Also also, this fic has a warning for graphic violence because of chapters like this. Nothing too gory, but here be some blood.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. 
> 
> If anyone wants to speculate, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).

There must have been some mistake.

That was the only explanation. Stephen flipped through the pages of the Book of Scrolls, seeing blank pages where there had once been long, flowing script and diagrams on how to perform the spells from Cyttorak’s dimension.

Blank. All of it was blank.

“What did you do?” Loki asked.

“What did _I_ do?” Stephen shouted. “I didn’t do this! I’m not even sure what this is! I’ve never heard of this happening before. The content of books does not just disappear.” His hands shook so hard he nearly dropped the book. Tony came to its rescue just before it hit the floor. “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know,” Loki said, confused. “I’ve seen cursed books. _I’ve_ placed curses on books, but I’ve never heard of books losing their content.” 

Loki took the book from Tony before either of them could make any objections. Something primal in Stephen wanted to stop Loki from holding a spell book with so much power, whether Loki was an ally now or not. The decision of whether or not to force the issue was taken from him as the book glowed green in Loki’s hands. 

Loki shook his head. “There’s no magic in this book. I sense nothing.”

“This is impossible,” Stephen said, grabbing the book from Loki. He flipped through the pages, looking for something, anything. The little drops of tea someone a hundred years ago had dripped on page three hundred and twenty two were there. The ink splatters made by some careless student all throughout chapters six through eight, still there. This was, without a doubt, the same book.

Only the magic was all gone.

_Fear_

“Stephen,” Tony whispered. It was only through their bond that Stephen could tell Tony was absolutely terrified. Maybe it was because Loki was present or maybe it was force of habit, but Tony didn’t show an ounce of the absolute terror he was feeling. “Stephen, what’s going on?”

He wanted to comfort Tony. All the uncertainty was terrifying enough, but for it to be about magic, which already frightened Tony... 

He wanted to say that this was just some magical anomaly and that they would get to the bottom of it and everything would be alright. 

But Stephen couldn’t say that because this had never happened before. Never in all his vast studies had he ever encountered anything like this.

“I don’t know,” he said. He turned to the Cloak. “Go find Wong.” The Cloak zipped out of the library and towards the stairs.

“Okay,” Tony said, wringing his hands as he started to pace. He took a deep breath. “So, I know nothing about magic, but I do know how to solve a problem. Break it down, so you don’t miss anything. Scientific method.” He clapped his hands together. Stephen appreciated him trying to add reason to this madness, especially with his own head spinning. “So the spell you used—tried to use—was found in that book. And now the spell doesn’t work because someone erased the book?”

Loki scoffed. “By the Norns, you’re dumb.”

“Shut up,” Stephen said to him. “No, the book itself held knowledge from the Crimson Cosmos, Cyttorak’s home dimension. When we cast that spell we draw power from that dimension. Many of the spells we use come from dimensions not our own.”

Tony stopped his pacing, and looked at the book. “So if the book is blank is that because…something happened to that dimension?”

Loki groaned. “You’re considered a king in this world, Stark. How can you be this dense?”

“Watch it,” Stephen growled. 

Loki continued like he’d said nothing. “Even if a war broke out that ended all life as we know it, that would not destroy magic. You can destroy a book or a relic, but you cannot destroy the magic behind it.”

“We’re not even sure if it’s every spell from this book,” Stephen said. “It could just be the one spell. We should try to—“

The deep hum of twin mandalas being created cut Stephen off. Tony summoned his gauntlets in an instant and a green mist surrounded Loki’s hands, both of them poised to strike. 

“Stephen,” Wong said through the Shields of the Seraphim. “What is the god of mischief and lies doing in the Sanctum?”

Silence stretched out between the four of them like nails on a chalkboard. No one moved, not even the Cloak. The five seconds it took for Stephen to get ahold of himself felt like an eternity.

“Stand down,” Stephen said. “All of you.” Tony put his hands down first, then the Cloak touched Wong’s hand to let him know it was alright to do so as well. Loki was the last one to put down his hands.

“What is going on?” Wong asked.

“When was the last time you tried to cast a spell from the Book of Scrolls?” Stephen asked.

Wong frowned. “I taught the novices how to cast the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak two weeks ago. Why do you ask?”

“Try to cast them now,” Stephen said.

Wong frowned. “Why? What is happening?”

“Please, Wong,” Stephen pleaded. “You can cast them on me. Just please do it.”

“Or you could cast them on Stark,” Loki said flippantly.

Without hesitation, Wong cast the bands on Loki. Just like before, nothing happened. Wong repeated the spell several times with the same results. 

“The same thing happened to me,” Stephen said. “And look.”

He showed the book to Wong, his shaking hands turning the blank pages. Wong grabbed the book from Stephen and turned the pages himself, growing more frantic by the moment.

“What does this mean?”

“I was hoping you would know,” Stephen said. “You’re the most knowledgeable sorcerer I know. If anyone would know if this had happened before it would be you.”

“Wait, we still need to establish a correlation between this book being blank,” Tony said, pointing to the book, "and that spell not working. So one of you cast another spell that’s only found in that book.”

The most benign spell from that book that Stephen could think of was an uncommonly used spell that conjured an extremely bright light. It was only rarely used because their own universe had several spells that were easier to learn. 

He performed the spell now, holding his breath. 

Nothing.

Wong cast a spell on a houseplant to make it grow exponentially faster, but received no result. He tried to conjure a burning blade that required blood to be spilled upon it within thirty seconds of its creation or risk death to the sorcerer.

Nothing.

“Okay,” Tony said. “That maybe settles that. Now what?”

“Has any other strange occurrence happened recently? Anything odd at all you’ve noticed in the multiverse?” Loki asked.

“The slugs,” Tony said, and Stephen’s eyes went wide.

“Yes, the slugs,” Stephen said, cursing himself for not thinking of it before. “They fed on magic, and they were starving. They could be related.”

“And the disappearance of Szandor Zoso,” Wong said. “The Sorcerer Supreme of the 13th Dimension. He disappeared weeks ago, but we have not been able to find him.”

“You failed to mention a missing Sorcerer Supreme?” Loki said to Stephen. 

“Why would I possibly mention that to you?” Stephen said. 

“I’m a superior sorcerer in every way.” Loki shrugged. “Seems the responsible thing to do.”

“You’re a superior pain in the ass, Snowflake,” Tony said. “You literally just tore up my lawn.”

“Focus please,” Wong said. “We must investigate this. Now. We need to go to the 13th Dimension and see what has happened there.” He paused and said, “And we should go to the Crimson Dimension as well.”

Stephen’s face fell. Going to hell dimensions was not what he wanted to do in the middle of the night.

“Crimson Dimension?” Tony asked, his voice shaking just a little. “Is that as disturbing as it sounds?”

“It’s a hell dimension, Stark,” Wong said.

“Ah. Fun.” Tony’s fear splashed over Stephen like a bucket of icy water. “Okay,” he said, his voice almost breaking, “when do we go?”

“Tony, you don’t have to come,” Stephen said. Magic still disturbed Tony so much, he was barely getting used to Stephen’s portals. Stephen didn’t want to think of a situation where Tony would be surrounded by magic.

“Oh, that’s cute,” Tony shoved his hands into his pockets, cocked his hip, and gave Stephen that nonchalant Tony Stark smile. If Stephen couldn’t feel it, he’d never know how terrified Tony actually was.

“You think I’m not coming with you into hell,” Tony said. He took a step closer to Stephen and took his hand. “You walked into my own personal hell with me. There’s no way I’m letting you walk into _literal_ hell without me, okay?”

“What?” Wong said, looking at their joined hands. “Is this what you were doing yesterday?”

“Uh, excuse me, my name is Tony.”

For a brief moment, Wong looked truly happy for Stephen, and Stephen smiled shyly in return.

Then Wong turned to Tony and the smile fell off his face. “At least you finally removed your head from your ass.” Then Wong frowned like something just occurred to him, and shoved a finger right in Tony’s face. “Wait a minute. Explain why a shipment of alcohol was delivered to the Sanctum.”

“Uh, because the Cloak literally offered me rubbing alcohol last time I had a drink here. You’re welcome,” Tony said.

Wong glared for a long moment, before leaning back. “I believe you,” he grunted. “But my warning still stands, Stark. If you break his heart, you have to deal with me.”

Despite the absolutely dire situation at hand, Stephen stopped for a moment. He turned to Wong with a glare. “Hang on. Did you really think that Tony was trying to ply me with alcohol?”

Wong had the grace to look a little ashamed. “In my defense, it was a lot of alcohol, Stephen,” he said. “Anyone looking into the cupboards would think we have a problem.” 

“Still,” Stephen said. “Yes, Wong, we finally straightened everything out,” he said, giving Tony’s hand a squeeze. “Everything’s good.”

“Nothing is good,” Loki said, holding another book that he must have just removed from the shelf. “Whatever it is that’s affected that book is affecting others as well. Look,” he said, opening the book and flipping through the pages. 

All blank.

“Right,” Stephen said. “We need to go. Now. Go fetch some water,” he said to the Cloak, “and some protein bars. We have no idea how long this could take.” 

“We should go to the 13th Dimension first,” Wong said. “Zoso has been missing for far longer than the issues with the books have been happening.”

“What about the slugs?” Tony asked.

“Those space things you and Strange ‘rescued’ New York from?” Loki asked. “What do they have to do with this?”

“They feed on magic and they were starving. They were trying to feed off of non-magical people, which is damning,” Stephen said.

“The slugs can wait. We do this quickly,” Wong said. “There is no need to draw this out unnecessarily. We will go to the 13th Dimension, see if we discover anything. Look in Zoso’s library for the books he was willing to trade with us.”

“I just went to the 13th Dimension, Wong, two days ago. I discovered nothing,” Stephen said.

Tony shuffled his feet and met Stephen’s eyes. “Yeah, but you didn’t really _go_ there, did you, Doc?” Tony asked.

“I may have astral projected, but I was there for most of a day looking for any scrap of information I could find,” Stephen said.

“Did you think to check in the library?” Wong asked.

Stephen opened his mouth, then abruptly closed it. His silence spoke for itself. 

“So we go to the 13th Dimension, and then this hell dimension, see what’s happening there, come back in time for breakfast,” Tony said, tapping at the nano casing, sounding more and more nervous as he went on. 

“Tony,” Stephen said, drawing him away from the others for a moment. “It’s going to be okay. This is a fact-finding mission. We aren’t going to be fighting any demons, nothing is going to be attacking us.” He stepped closer to Tony, completely uncaring of the other people in the room, allowing Tony to draw strength from Stephen’s certainty. 

Closing his eyes and stepping closer to Stephen, Tony put his forehead against his, rubbing their noses together while he caught his breath. That Stephen had this, that he was allowed to do this now, set his heart on fire. He grabbed Tony as tightly as he could, and brought him in for a much-needed embrace.

He could have these whenever he wanted, he thought happily. He’d take one right now, thank you very much.

“God, I love you,” Tony said, muffled into his shoulder. “You know, in case you forgot since yesterday.”

“I hadn’t, but I’ll take it.” He leaned in further and kissed him. “I love you, too,” he whispered. Tony smiled against his lips and kissed him again.

“This is disgusting,” Loki said, breaking the moment. “Your Cloak is back with supplies,” Loki said, putting the bottles of water and snacks in a pocket dimension. “We need to get moving.”

Arms still around Stephen’s waist, Tony asked, “Hey, I don’t want to hit on a sore spot, really, but didn’t the courts tell you not to leave the planet?” 

Loki waved a hand in the air. “How are they possibly going to know I went dimension hopping? There’s no way to track me there. It’ll be fine. Although,” he said carefully. “I should let Thor know where I’m going.” He pulled out a Starkphone that Tony must have given him at some point.

“Yeah, speaking of Thor,” Tony said, “he looked really upset. I know he can hold his own against Rogers and Maximoff, but he was really worried about you. Maybe we should—“

“B-R-B,” Loki said aloud as he typed up the text message. “And sent. Alright, I’m ready to go.”

In the center of the room where there were no artifacts or shelves, Wong began the series of spells that would open a portal to the 13th Dimension. It would take him less than a minute, which meant Stephen didn’t have a lot of time.

“Tony, you don’t have to come,” Stephen said, begging him to reconsider. “I’ve been to this dimension several times. I’ll be fine. I’ll have Wong and…Loki with me.”

“Yeah, that’s not inspiring confidence, Doc,” Tony said in a solemn tone. “I’m going with you. I will be fine, okay? I’ll have you, and Big Red, Wong, and Loki.” He gave a soft laugh and cupped Stephen’s cheek. “Look, we both know magic scares the crap out of me. I’m working on it because now magic means you, and you’re everything. And I trust my magic husband to protect me and let me know when something needs handling. Okay?”

“Bondmate,” Stephen said, smiling, his heart soaring. Even through all this fear, all this confusion, Tony was the most perfect bondmate he could have asked for. The bravest man Stephen had ever known. A man willing to walk straight into hell alongside him.

Who was he to deny Tony Stark?

“Alright,” Stephen said, bumping his nose with Tony’s. “But please stay close to me. The Cloak will help you as well.” The Cloak nodded its collar along Stephen’s shoulder.

“Stephen,” Wong said, and cast the last mandalas, opening a portal to the 13th Dimension right in the middle of the library. “We need to go.”

Looking into the portal, Stephen saw red dirt blowing by what looked like the remains of a forest. He’d explored the temple and the surrounding city when he’d astral projected, but not the library. Something terrible definitely happened here. 

Wong stepped through first, then Loki. Stephen held Tony’s hand.

“Deep breath,” Stephen said. Tony nodded and obeyed, then activated the suit.

They stepped through the portal together.

*

Tony took a step into another world, into another dimension. The red dirt in the air made Tony think of every science fiction apocalypse story he’d ever read as a kid. The bomb had been dropped and the air was poisoned for ten thousand years. A chill ran down his back, and he checked the suit’s air filters.

“Friday, you with me?”

“I’m here, boss.”

“Is the air safe to breathe?”

The silence for a moment, then Friday said, “The atmosphere is similar to Earth’s. I’m not reading any contaminants that would make it dangerous for humans.” 

Similar didn’t mean exact, and Stephen didn’t have a suit with a built-in air filter. Neither did Wong or Loki. “Even without an air filter?”

“Tony, the air here is fine. It’s always been fine,” Stephen said from a few steps ahead of him. “Whatever happened here, it wasn’t chemical. And this planet has always been safe for humans.

“I had already checked the temple for signs of life,” Stephen said to Wong. “I also checked the surrounding town. There was nothing.”

“We should make for the library then,” Wong said, gesturing to a building close by. “We only need to check on the status of their books, then we can move on.”

Tony took samples of the atmosphere and read the results as they walked towards what appeared to be a large temple. It was difficult to make out with all the wind and the red dust in the air. He stooped down to take a dirt sample too. 

“Anything else I need to know, Friday?” 

She was silent for a moment, then said, “There are trace amounts of Gamma radiation in the air.” 

The discovery sent a chill down Tony’s spine.

_What could possibly put out trace amounts of Gamma radiation?_

Slowly, the four of them made the trek towards the library, Tony stopping along the way to take more samples: grabbing a leaf off a tree, scanning a fallen nut, analyzing the air quality _again_.

“What about now?” Tony asked softly, not wanting anyone else to overhear. “The dust is getting thicker.”

“It’s still okay, boss. I’ll tell you if that changes.”

Turning to Tony, Stephen stopped to allow him to catch up. “Are you examining tree nuts? Is there anything your suit can’t do?” Stephen asked, obviously trying to lighten the extremely dark mood.

“I don’t know, Doc,” Tony said, forcing his fear away to meet Stephen’s flirtation with a purr. “We could always find out.”

Behind his heart, the little butterfly’s wings flapped in overtime. Tony couldn’t help his laugh through his fear.

“Quiet,” Wong said. He walked up the first steps to the library, then crouched on the floor. The rest of them followed suit, falling silent as they entered what might be a tomb. 

The silence was broken by Wong rising to his feet and casting a shield. Loki and Stephen followed suit while Tony fired up his repulsors. Slowly, Wong approached the front doors to the library, stepping out of Tony’s sight. 

Tony took to the air and immediately saw what made Wong pause.

The corpse of an enormous creature, dead and decaying, lay massacred across the threshold of the library. 

“What the hell is that thing?” Tony asked, not caring if his voice sounded terrified. He’d never seen any creature that big before. Not on land. This was the sort of thing that only existed in legends and nightmares.

It was tall and long, with jet black hair that covered its entire body except for a patch on its back that may have been scales before it was torn apart. Its joints were bent the opposite direction. Its teeth were stained red, and its claws were razor sharp.

“I don’t know,” Stephen said. “A giant wolf of some kind? It’s not native to this dimension.”

“How is that a wolf?” Tony shouted.

Loki’s silence was noticeable. He circled the giant creature, sending green flashes of light on one side and then the other, obviously looking for something and not finding it.

“You suspect something,” Stephen finally said. “What is it?”

There was silence for another moment before Loki shook his head. The quiet was eerie in a way Tony couldn’t put his finger on.

It was broken a moment later by Wong opening the heavy front door, the hinges groaning with its age.

They slowly entered the library, prepared to find more death and destruction, but to Tony’s surprise found nothing. The library was vast and impressive, and Tony would swear it was as big as the Compound.

Loki immediately went to the shelves and started picking up books, flipping through the pages, then tossing them over his shoulder to the floor. 

“Blank,” he said, in an unnatural monotone. “They’re all blank.”

“Here are the books we were to trade,” Wong said, opening the books on an old wooden desk. “They are also blank.”

“Do any of the spells from this dimension work?” Tony asked, his voice shaking. “Correlation?”

Wong shook his head. “This was to be our first knowledge trade with the 13th Dimension. We have no way of knowing if their spells are still working.”

“This isn’t enough?” Loki said, waving another empty book around. “Is this not enough proof for you? What more do you require?”

“We should move on,” Stephen said. “Wong had the right idea. We shouldn’t linger too long here. We already have what we came for.” He came closer to Tony. “Let’s go to the Crimson Dimension and then home.”

“Yup, that plan has my vote,” Tony said. He had Friday take one last reading, noting the Gamma radiation was slightly higher inside the library. The sooner they left here the better.

“Stark, Loki,” Wong said, putting on his sling ring. “The Crimson Dimension is home to ancient creatures who feed off souls. Do not, under any circumstances, say anyone’s name. If they have your name, they can find you. Do you understand?”

Loki nodded. “Names have power. One of the fundamentals of magic.”

Tony, on the other hand, was still trying to wrap his head around what ‘they can find you’ meant.

Again, Wong began making complicated hand sigils and a moment later opened a portal to another dimension. 

Unlike every other portal Tony had seen Stephen and Wong cast, this portal didn’t reveal their destination when it opened.

A gaping black maw was all Tony could see when he tried to look through the portal. Tony couldn’t help himself. He shivered in his suit, took a deep breath, and took Stephen’s hand, careful not to grip too hard.

“It’s going to be fine,” Stephen said. “I won’t leave you.” He bumped his shoulder against Tony’s. “We can literally say we walked into hell together.”

Tony scoffed to hide his panic. “Not something every married couple can say.”

“Bonded,” Stephen said automatically.

Hand-in-hand, they walked through the portal, and into what Tony had always suspected hell would look like.

The terrain was all black rock broken only by blood red trees with dead leaves draping over decaying land. This sky wasn’t red from dust like the 13th Dimension. The sky itself was a dark crimson, and a black mist obscured Tony’s vision so he couldn’t see more than thirty feet in front of him. Distant screams were heard over the rocky terrain. 

“Yeah, no,” Tony said, and put his hands in attack position. “Is this the way this place is normally? Please tell me this isn’t normal.”

“This is normal,” Stephen said. “Everything but the screaming.” He stooped down to the ground, and touched what Tony had thought was just dirt. When Stephen brought his hand back up, Tony could see it was blood. “And the blood.”

“Oh, God,” Tony muttered. He needed to distract himself quickly or he was going to be useless. The readings, he told himself. Take readings. Do science.

Taking a deep breath, Tony forced himself to focus and take the first atmospheric reading. 

“Friday, what do you got?”

“Gamma radiation,” she said. “Seventy-eight percent more than in the 13th Dimension.”

“Enough to damage…my husband and the others?”

“No, but—“ she said, then her voice cut off. 

Tony’s heart fell to his knees. He checked his systems, but the rest of his suit appeared to be working.

“Friday?”

_Gamma radiation._

But Gamma radiation had never hurt Friday or any of his other AIs before.

“Is there normally a huge amount of Gamma radiation in this hell?” Tony asked Stephen.

Stephen and Wong gave each other a considering look. “I’ve never taken a reading myself. I have no idea.”

“Okay, because there was Gamma radiation in the last place and there’s even more here. And now Friday’s gone.”

Again, Loki looked around like he was seeing more than the three of them. That wouldn’t surprise Tony, what with him being fifteen hundred years old, but still. 

“Have something to share with the class, Snowflake?” Tony asked.

Loki didn’t hear him. He was looking off into the distance—or trying to—past a copse of crimson trees and black rocks to some other place in this hell that Tony couldn’t see.

He didn’t care. All he wanted was to get out of here.

“Is there anything else we need to know here? It’s hell, it’s terrifying. What else is there?” 

Stephen and Wong gave each other another look. “Aside from the Gamma radiation, this is the nature of the Crimson Cosmos. We need to find their library and take a look at their books. That’s the only way we can be certain.”

Tony’s heart sank, but he understood. “Correlation.”

Stephen nodded, then took his hand.

“I believe the Temple of the Cursed Tomes is east,” Wong said, then started walking toward the copse of tree things Loki was still staring at.

“Hold,” Loki suddenly said, breaking his silence. “Do you hear that?”

“Hear what—“ Tony asked, and then he heard it too.

A growling. A deep, ear-splitting growl Tony felt all the way to his bones.

It was coming from behind the hellscape they were headed towards, the thick fog hiding whatever creature was making that awful sound.

Tony didn’t waste another second. He fired up his repulsors and stepped in front of Stephen. Stephen and Wong cast their shields, and Loki conjured an ice blade.

It went to show how absolutely terrified Tony was that he did not make a joke about bringing an ice blade to a hell fight.

Like a waking nightmare, a slow movement emerged from the black mist. Three shadows emerged, and the closer they got the clearer Tony could see them. 

Three giant beasts approached them, their teeth flashing in the red light, blood dripping from their snouts. Their movements were disjointed and unnatural. As Tony looked harder, he could see that their joints were all backwards.

Fear threatened to overtake Tony for a moment, before he felt Stephen’s own fear and got ahold of himself.

He didn’t wait for the beasts to strike. He blasted the one closest to Stephen with a repulsor beam and took to the air. 

That was a terrible mistake. Tony could no longer see the ground, and he lost sight of Stephen and the others. His heart threatened to beat out of his chest, he dove towards where Stephen had been, not finding him in all the mist. 

He heard a deep growl before one of the beasts vaulted towards Tony, snarling and snapping its enormous jaw. Again, Tony launched himself upward, only for the beast to vault twenty feet in the air to reach him. 

The sight of the beast emerging through the shadow and mist with its mouth wide open was like living a nightmare.

He forced himself back to the present. Not wanting to test the strength of the nanoparticles against the power of the creature’s jaw, Tony created a shield, blocking the bite and knocking it across the head. He could hear the snarling and snapping of jaws as the other two beasts made their own attacks, but he couldn’t see through the mist to know what was happening.

The beast landed on the ground on all fours, completely unfazed, and took one look at Tony.

It seemed like it was looking _through_ him. 

It snarled one last time before it turned away from Tony and leaped for Wong and Stephen.

Wong and Stephen who were busy defending themselves from their own beast.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Tony shouted and created a blade made from his nanoparticles. From the air, Tony dived as hard as he could, stabbing the beast in the back, a high pitched whine coming from it. The blade went all the way through the beast, but it still kept fighting. It snapped and snarled at Tony, who backed away and fired at it again from the air. 

“Can’t you just create one of your damned portals?” Loki screamed over the snarling of the beasts. “Make it fall into nothingness?”

“No!” Stephen shouted, burning blade in one hand, shield in the other, trying to keep a beast away from him and Wong. “Not easily! Not in this dimension!”

Tony launched himself like a bullet towards the beast, using his momentum to sink another blade deeper into its chest. It seemed to be staggering and hurt, but it still wasn’t down for the count.

“Go for his neck, Iron Man!” Loki shouted.

A cold wind blew across Tony’s neck.

Through the suit.

**_Iron Man…_ **

“Iron Man!” Wong shouted. “Do not turn around! Whatever you do, do not turn around!”

“Iron Man, don’t move!” Stephen screamed. “I’m coming!”

Easier said than done when the beast Tony had just stabbed was still struggling to get up and finish him off. Fear had always motivated Tony, but now he let it paralyze him. He stood absolutely still as the voice behind him continued to whisper. 

**_Iron Man…_ **

Tony saw the burning blade through the mist first, then Stephen as the Cloak flew him over the beast to attack. As Stephen raised his blade to cast the killing blow, the beast snarled and bit Stephen’s forearm.

“No!” Tony shouted, and blasted the beast’s head until it let go.

_**Iron Man…** _

Wong came up from behind them and cast a bright, shining light directly behind Tony’s head. A deep, heavy black mist floated near Tony’s eyes before he turned away from it and towards Stephen. He heard the sounds of metal stabbing into flesh as Wong finished the beast off, and Tony carried Stephen away. 

“Baby, let me see,” Tony said, his voice shaking. He was trying to find the wound, surprised Stephen’s arm was even there at all. He readied his nanoparticles to stop the bleeding. He couldn’t lose Stephen now, not after they’d finally sorted things out. Not after he finally realized he loved him.

“Oh, thank the Vishanti,” Stephen breathed. “And all the Norse pantheon.” He lifted his arm and showed the only slightly dented vambraces the Cloak had won off Loki.

“Oh, thank God,” Tony gasped, laying his head on Stephen’s. “Oh, thank you.”

A high-pitched whine broke through the sounds of the fight behind Tony. He turned and through the mist saw that Wong had helped Loki finish off the last beast. 

“Is everyone okay?” Tony asked.

“Yes,” Wong shouted. “His arm?”

“Well-protected,” Stephen said, showing them.

“You’re welcome,” Loki shouted. “Nevermind that I was left defenseless.”

“As you so love to remind us,” Stephen said, getting to his feet. “You are a god.”

“That shouldn’t have happened,” Loki said, walking up to Tony. “Iron Man isn’t your name.”

“Yes, it is,” Stephen said. “He _is_ Iron Man.”

“Can we please leave now?” Tony screamed. “Look, forget the books. There was Gamma radiation there, there’s Gamma radiation here. There was a big fucking dead _thing_ there, there are three fucking dead _things_ here. That’s enough correlation for me!”

“I agree,” Stephen said to Wong. “Let’s go. This is already more than we expected.”

Wong nodded and began creating a portal to take them back home. As he cast the first sigil, a figure appeared on the black rocks where the beasts had come. The figure stood out in all the mist with white armor against the black and blood. 

Wong created the next sigil. 

The figure slowly began to approach them and brought up a hand. In their palm was a white box that slowly slid open to reveal a glowing red light…

An untarnished white suit in a blood-drenched hell dimension was more than enough cause for Tony to create a shield around Stephen and Wong with one hand and raise a repulsor with another.

“Oh, Norns,” Loki whispered to himself.

The portal to the Sanctum glowed gold in the sea of darkness, and Tony grabbed Stephen and ran through. Wong and Loki quickly followed, and Wong shut the portal immediately. 

“Oh, fuck,” Tony said, the armor receding. He grabbed his chest, his heart racing. “Stephen,” he cried out. “Stephen, baby, come here. Please.”

Stephen wrapped his arms around Tony, and the Cloak embraced them both. 

“You’re okay,” Stephen whispered. “Shh. You saved me. You saved us.”

“Friday?” Tony asked, his voice muffled into the Cloak.

“I’m here, boss. I’m not sure what happened.”

“Those creatures were not native to the Crimson Cosmos. What were they?” Wong asked Loki. “You recognized them.”

Over Stephen’s shoulder, Tony saw Loki sitting in an armchair, silently staring at the shelves.

“You did,” Tony said, not letting go of Stephen. “Didn’t you?” 

He’d never seen Loki be so still and silent before. Normally he was always doing something, always talking, or glaring, or observing in a way that you knew would come back to bite you on the ass later.

But now he was just being still, staring off into nothing.

“No,” Loki finally said a moment later. “Not really.”

“Not really doesn’t mean no,” Wong said. “Tell us what you know.” He took in Loki’s stunned and silent demeanor and softened his tone somewhat. “Maybe in the talking you can figure it out.”

Loki shook his head. “I’ve never seen wolves like that before. My sister Hela, she had a hellhound, somewhat larger than those were, but there was something very different about these.” 

“Again, how the hell were those wolves?” Tony asked, his voice trembling. “What do wolves look like where you come from?”

“What was different about them?” Wong asked.

“I don’t know. It’s like something out of a nightmare I had as a child. The only other person who’s even alive who might know is…” Loki trailed off and looked at Stephen.

“Take me back to my brother.”

Stephen nodded, but Tony was reluctant to let go. “It’s fine, Tony,” Stephen said, then managed to steal his right hand away from Tony somehow. Tony wouldn’t let go of his left. He took his sling ring from his way-too-many belts and created a portal back to the Compound.

“Stephen,” Wong said, before Tony and Stephen crossed over. “I will stay and contact the elder sorcerers. We must let them know as soon as possible.”

“You don’t seriously think they’d send more sorcerers to investigate the Crimson Cosmos?” Stephen asked.

“I don’t know,” Wong said. “But they must be informed.”

“Stephen…” Tony pleaded, seeing the common room of the Compound, being so close to home after that awful interdimensional road trip. All he wanted after that hell was Stephen and home.

Finally, they stepped through. Loki followed after them, and Stephen closed the portal.

“Now to find my—oof!” Loki cried out as Thor came from behind and attacked him.

Or hugged him. It was kind of hard to tell.

“I thought you had left,” Thor cried, his voice muffled into Loki’s shoulder. “I knew you had left this universe to where I could not follow. I feared the worst. I feared you had left me again.”

Loki gave a very fake eye roll and twisted in Thor’s arms so he could hug him back. Despite how he might have wanted to look like he didn’t care for Thor’s feelings, Tony saw his eyes close for a moment as he exhaled and visibly relaxed into Thor’s arms.

“I said I’d be right back,” Loki grunted.

“Is that what BRB means?” Thor asked.

“Oh, it is way too early for this conversation,” Tony said, walking over to the sofa, still holding Stephen’s hand. “Friday, windows. All the windows.” He sank down into the sofa and pulled Stephen onto his lap, wrapping his arms around his waist and letting his chin rest on Stephen’s shoulder.

Wall panels opened to reveal the sunrise, and it was one of the most beautiful sights Tony had ever seen. A soft yellow sun and sky slowly turning dark to light blue. He squeezed Stephen tighter and sighed, the fatigue of the past day hitting him hard.

“I’m alright,” Stephen said, kissing his head. “We all made it back. I’m not going anywhere.”

The Cloak patted Tony’s head, its collar soft and warm on Tony’s cheeks.

Stephen shifted in his lap. “Am I too heavy?”

Tony shook his head. “No. Gonna feed you all the Ranch dressing you want.”

“Brother, what happened?” Thor asked, releasing Loki from the all-encompassing hug only to grab hold of his shoulders. “One moment you were in a rage, the next you were gone.”

“That was hardly a rage,” Loki said. “It’s not as though I stabbed anyone. There was some lawn maintenance done, that’s all. You’re welcome, Stark.”

“Fuck you, Loki,” Tony said into the Cloak.

“Loki, please,” Thor said. “What happened?”

“Many things have happened in the past few hours, and I will tell you all of them,” Loki said urgently. “But first I have to ask you: what do you remember of the witchfinder wolves?”

Frowning, Thor gave Loki a look of disbelief, then looked up and away, as though he was searching through memories he hadn’t thought of for years. Considering how long Thor had been alive, Tony wasn’t surprised he took a minute. 

“The…story Father would tell us as children about the wolves that hated all forms of magic?” Thor asked.

Loki nodded.

“I remember him telling us if we were bad children who didn’t do our lessons properly the witchfinder wolves would come and devour us whole. Do you mean those wolves?” Thor asked.

“Yes,” Loki said, again with a far-away look in his eyes. “What details about them do you remember? I was too little and Mother put a stop to it when she found out.”

Thor’s laugh was like a sigh of relief. “Brother, that was just a story Father used to tell us to scare us into doing our lessons properly. I didn’t master the use of my elemental powers until I was a teen. For years, the farmers of Asgard had to contend with feast or famine,” Thor said with a shrug of his shoulders.

“And you! Let’s be honest, looking back on it now it was obvious he was afraid of you, brother. You had already surpassed so many of your teachers. He was terrified of you and rightly so. I love our father, but I can acknowledge he wanted to keep both of us under his thumb through fear.”

“Sounds familiar,” Tony mumbled. Stephen petted his hair.

“If there is one thing I have come to accept about our father it’s that his truths were never fully truths, and his lies were never fully lies,” Loki said. “There was always a little bit of either mixed in.”

“What are you saying?” Thor asked.

“I don’t know. Not for sure. But this morning we went to a hell dimension, and I believe the witchfinder wolves were there.” Loki looked up at his brother and said, “I believe something terrible is happening to magic.”

Like a strong wind, Thor swept Loki up into another hug. 

“Brother, all those stories were just meant to make us afraid. To keep us in line. There are no magic-detecting wolves.”

Something about that gave Tony a brain itch. The wolf on the hell dimension had only attacked after Tony had attacked first. And at the first opportunity, it had turned away from Tony to attack Stephen and Wong.

“Wait, so in this story,” Tony asked, “the wolves could detect magic?”

“Oh yes,” Thor said with a sad smile, finally releasing Loki. “Our father used to terrify us to pay attention to our tutors. The witchfinder wolves were enormous and could detect magic from other worlds.”

A cold sweat broke out and Tony took a deep breath.

“And they were commanded by zealots who hated magic and whose goal was to kill every practitioner in the multiverse. What was their name, brother?” Thor asked.

Tony took one look at Loki’s eyes and his next breath was staggered. Stephen gripped him tighter and whispered for him to breath.

“The Empirikul,” Loki whispered, like just saying their name would bring them here.

“Yes, the Empirikul,” Thor said with a nod. “Led by a giant of a man who wore all white armor to better show off the blood of his enemies. It was a ridiculous story, truly something only a child would be frightened by.”

Tony nails dug into the Cloak, but it didn’t shake him off. Tony kept his eyes wide open, concentrated on the sun, and kept his breaths deep and even. Stephen was muttering a string of reassurances that Tony failed to concentrate on. 

The look of absolute desolation on Loki’s face was all he could see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm borrowing quite a bit from 616 to enhance this fic. The idea that Loki considers Tony a king was directly from Loki #2 that was just put out a few weeks ago. The names of people and dimensions are taken from 616. That being said, you absolutely do not need to read the comics to appreciate and follow this fic. Everything is going to be explained.
> 
> That being said, at least one person correctly guessed the villain of the story a few chapters ago. Rock on, turtle.


	17. Stories & Lies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left kudos and comments on the last chapter. I'm also so incredibly happy to see this story be so well-received. 
> 
> Like I mentioned last week, this fic will be borrowing from 616 but you do not have to have read any comics to enjoy it. Everything will be explained. A lot of people who _have_ read the comics have guessed where this fic is going and...yeah. It's going.
> 
> Also, I'm going on vacation! I'll be in San Francisco for a few days so I'll be taking another one-week break. The next chapter is just over 4k words right now, and I'm about half-way through writing it. It's probably possible to get it done in three days, but I don't want to rush it. I care a ridiculous amount for this fic, and I want to do right by it. Also, I feel like publishing a chapter a week for a few weeks and then taking a one-week break is a better than publishing every two weeks, which I'd rather not do.

A part of Stephen couldn’t make sense of what he was hearing, but then he supposed childhood nightmares always followed you in one way or another.

“Loki,” he started, then tried to think of the most delicate way to say this. “Even if those were the witchfinder wolves, that doesn’t explain what happened to the books or the magic behind them. All it gives us is…the names of the wolves.”

“Still not seeing how those things were wolves,” Tony mumbled into the Cloak.

Loki whirled around, his face a twist of fear and anger, then suddenly stopped. Like the air let out of a balloon, Stephen could see Loki deflate and consider his words.

“Your world knows me as the god of mischief and lies,” he said. Stephen lifted an eyebrow. “Asgard called me that, and I’ve long since adopted the title. But that isn’t my actual title.”

Still on Tony’s lap, Stephen shifted a bit. “Okay, I’ll bite. What’s your actual title?”

“My brother is the god of stories,” Thor said, his tone proud.

Loki shrugged. “Mischief and lies has a better ring to it. God of stories doesn’t strike fear in the heart of my enemies in quite the same way.”

“And you’re telling us this why, Snowflake?” Tony asked. 

“Because legends are never completely true. That’s what makes them legends. If they were completely true they’d belong in history books.” His hands glowed and then green lights shot out of them, dancing. The lights grew taller, then shorter, more dull then more bright, always changing, always moving. “They take twists and turns over the years, exaggerations happen from storyteller to storyteller, and what once was truth becomes something else.”

“A story,” Stephen said. 

“A lie,” Tony said at the same time.

“Both,” Loki said with a nod. “I don’t know the origin of the witchfinder wolves. Our father probably altered the legend himself for his benefit, to get us to pay better attention to our magic lessons.”

“Very likely,” Thor said.

“But the idea behind the wolves is this: the Empirikul hates magic and magic users and will go to any length to destroy them. Well, what if they found a way to destroy magic at its source?”

Stephen struggled to get up and pace, but Tony held on tight. “How?” Stephen asked. “How could they possibly destroy magic at its source? There is no source! We draw magic from the universe!”

“I have no idea,” Loki said. “But legends always begin with a truth. If the Empirikul are real, and they’ve been trying to find a way to destroy magic…”

Stephen shuddered in Tony’s embrace. 

“What if they’ve found a way?” Stephen said.

Loki nodded.

There was silence for a moment, then Stephen shook his head. “But Loki, that’s impossible. It’s like you yourself said. You can destroy an entire world, every book and artifact, but that would not destroy magic,” Stephen said.

“It is the only thing that makes sense to me,” Loki said. “All magic has a source, all stories started as truth. This is one thing I know for certain.”

“So what do we do?” Tony asked, his head still on Stephen’s shoulder. “I would really prefer not to go dimension hopping again if we can help it.”

“Wong is consulting with the elder sorcerers. They’ll more than likely increase security at the Sanctums and Kamar-Taj.” He sighed as he thought of how many novices they had as opposed to trained and experienced sorcerers. “And we’ll probably alter our training schedule. Add more battle spells as opposed to the basics.”

“Would it help if I added some of my security?” Tony asked.

“ _Oh, hell_ ,” Stephen thought. That was an incredibly generous offer, and Stephen did some mental gymnastics trying to think of a kind way to turn it down.

He came up blank.

“I don’t think so, Tony.” He ran his fingers over the nape of Tony’s hair. “Also, I doubt the elder sorcerers would approve. They’re already terrified my relationship with you will lead to the world finding out about magic.”

“Ugh,” Tony grunted, throwing his head back in frustration. “Yeah, and I don’t want to think about what happens when Rogers and the gang find out about this.”

Stephen drew back. “Why would we tell them anything?”

Tony’s mouth opened then snapped shut. “I mean…they’ll probably figure out something's going on when the Quinjet takes off to Kamar-Taj, right?”

He squirmed in Tony’s lap. “Why would the Quinjet go to Kamar-Taj?”

Tony blinked for a moment, then said, “Because…all hands on deck? What if Kamar-Taj is attacked? I mean, yeah, the four of us here can pack a punch, but I wouldn’t want to leave any cards laying on the table if your life is on the line. Or your order’s.”

Stephen hadn’t considered they might be of two minds on this, but maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised. Tony was his bondmate. Of course he would want to do everything in his power to protect Stephen and his world. It was understandable, really. 

Understandable but impossible.

“Tony, I don’t think we should let the Rogues know anything about this. This isn’t Avengers business. This isn’t something they’re prepared to handle. This is for the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj.” He reached out for Tony’s hand. “Please let us handle it.”

Tony bit his lip, and Stephen could feel the turmoil roaring inside him.

“Look, I understand not telling the others about your order, I don’t trust them either,” Tony said. “But what about me? Can I help? What about Thor and Loki and Peter? And Rhodey! I trust Rhodey with my life.”

“I don’t know, Tony.” He felt extremely awkward having this conversation on Tony’s lap. “I know that the elder sorcerers want to avoid as much attention as possible.”

“What you want may be impossible, Strange,” Loki muttered from the dining area table. 

“Sorry to interrupt, boss,” Friday said. “Steve Rogers is approaching the common area.”

“Oh, great. Exactly what we need,” Tony muttered to himself. He turned to Thor. “How’d it go after we left, big guy?”

Thor sighed and said, “At first we disagreed on who was responsible for Loki, but I was able to convince Rogers that he was my brother and therefore my responsibility.”

“Responsibility?” Loki spat out. “Am I a child?”

“Yes,” Stephen, Tony, and Thor said as a chorus.

As Stephen heard the door to the common room slide open, he realized too late he was still sitting on Tony’s lap. 

Oh, well. At least Tony was surprisingly comfortable.

Heavy boots tapped across the floor, and Steve Rogers stepped between Thor and Loki situated near the dining area table and Stephen and Tony still sitting on the sofa. 

He took in Stephen still sitting in Tony’s lap for just a moment, then quickly turned away. He gave a cold look to Loki, then addressed Tony. He was careful not to look at Stephen.

“Tony, can I talk to you for a minute?”

_Fear_

_Anger_

_Annoyance_

“Sure, Cap, go ahead,” Tony said, making no move to get up.

“Alone?” Rogers asked.

“Nah,” Tony said, then nestled deeper into the cushions. “Too comfortable. But go ahead. I’m sure whatever you have to say can be shared with the rest of the class.”

The first thing out of his mouth needed to be an apology, Stephen thought. After the chaos he (and Stephen too, Stephen supposed) had caused at the meeting the other day, the absolute first words said needed to be ‘I’m sorry, Tony.’

“Can you excuse us please?” Rogers said to Loki.

Stephen didn’t even try to hold back his groan of disappointment.

A flash of light and then Loki looked like Rogers again, but instead of the casual wear Rogers was currently wearing, he was wearing the full Captain America get-up. 

“Can you excuse us please?” Loki said, in a mocking version of Rogers. “Ooo, I feel like I’m not getting this right. Not quite as constipated as the real thing.”

“Fine,” Rogers said, his mouth a flat line. “Tony, no one wants Loki on the Avengers. We’d like him to leave the Compound.”

“Oh God, I do not have time for this,” Tony said, burying his face into the Cloak once again.

“He attacked the Compound last night,” Rogers said. “If Thor hadn’t been there to keep him under control, God knows what might have happened.”

Thor took a step forward. “No one controls my brother.”

“Shut up, Thor!” Loki shouted, still as Rogers. “You call that an attack?” Loki said, flashing back to himself. “That wasn’t an attack. That was me and my brother having a strongly-worded conversation that you had no business sticking your nose into. If I attack you you’ll know by how dead you are.”

“You could’ve fooled me,” Rogers said. “You were using your magic and you attacked Thor, who’s an Avenger.”

Stephen and Tony shared a look of mutual horror at Rogers’ words and the sudden dramatic tension that fell on the room. Loki slowly tilted his head to the side and glared. If he’d been a lesser sorcerer, Rogers would be dead on his feet from the lack of control.

“He’s my brother first,” Loki hissed through his teeth.

“Yes,” Thor said. He didn’t move his feet, but he leaned forward towards Rogers and crossed his arms. Stephen could feel the subtle shift in Thor’s body language like a warning. “We spoke about this last night, and yet here we are again discussing it in the morning.” 

He leaned forward and growled. “My brother is no longer a threat. He was having words with me. There was no destruction of property, and there were no other people involved before you and Wanda arrived. You had no right to step into a family affair, Captain.”

“Look, Thor, I don’t want to fight you on this,” Rogers said.

“Then don’t,” Thor replied. 

“But see this from our point of view. You say your brother’s reformed, then he lets loose and destroys the Compound’s front lawn. You can’t blame us for thinking he’s not stable enough to be on the Avengers.”

“Well,” Stephen said, “if stability is something that’s needed to be on the Avengers, I think a lot of people are in trouble.”

Tony released a bark of laughter, then covered his mouth with his hand. “Sorry, Cap, but you kinda walked into that one.”

Rogers turned to him, gave him a good look after he’d been trying to avoid his and Tony’s public display of affection. He gave Stephen a long, cold stare. When he spoke, his voice was carefully light. “How’s your hand?”

Stephen let his hand wiggle its way into Tony’s shirt. He met his eyes and said, “Warm.”

“Look, Steve, it’s really not even up to me,” Tony said. “The Hague sentenced Loki to five hundred years of community service on the Avengers. So if you have an issue with it, you’ll have to take it up with them.”

“That might be odd, Rogers, since you just received a pardon yourself,” Stephen said, tapping his lips. “What’s that saying about glass houses?”

“You can’t teach it new tricks?” Tony said. 

Stephen smiled despite himself and kissed his temple.

“Seriously, Steve, you can go to the UN, but I wouldn’t,” Tony said. “Half of the delegates still think you’re a criminal. Which, you know…”

He looked legitimately upset, like what Stephen and Tony had said had actually affected him. He shuffled his feet once and looked to his boots. “Right,” Rogers said, frowning. “Look, Tony, I know things are rough between us right now, but please tell me you don’t think that.”

Feeling Tony tense up beneath him, Stephen finally slid off his lap so Tony could stand up.

“No, I really don’t,” Tony said. “I know that everything you did—everything you were prosecuted for—you did for the Avengers. Hell, you were right about Ross. Everything I said to you before it hit the fan in Siberia still stands, Steve.

“But look me in the eye and explain to me why Wanda deserves to be on the Avengers, but Loki doesn’t.”

Rogers looked up from the floor then.

“You can’t honestly compare them, Tony,” Rogers said. “What Wanda did was terrible, but she was a product of war. After everything she went through, you can’t claim she was in her right mind when she did what she did.”

“Okay,” Tony said, holding up a hand. “Okay, I can _maybe_ buy that argument. Sure. Wanda had a terrible experience that wasn’t her fault, and made some really bad decisions. Wasn’t one hundred percent responsible for her own choices, okay. Same thing is true for Loki.”

Roger’s neck turned towards Loki fast enough to give him whiplash.

“So if you want to make that argument for why Wanda gets to be an Avenger, fine,” Tony said, putting his hands in his pockets. “But you have to make the same argument for Loki as well. Even the Hague saw that, and what do they know?”

Rogers opened his mouth to retort, to deny without thinking the truth about Loki that had to be making its way from the courtroom in the Hague to every news outlet in the world.

But then he stopped himself, seemed to do something Stephen hadn’t thought was possible: paused and considered.

“I read something about that this morning,” Rogers said softly. “What exactly happened before you came to Earth?” he asked Loki. “The first time.”

Rogers might have been willing to listen, but Loki understandably didn’t want to talk. “None of your business,” he hissed.

“Brother,” Thor said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You wanted the world to know the truth about what happened.”

“Not him!”

“He’s part of the world,” Thor said gently. “And he is asking. Let me tell him.”

A calloused hand found its way into Stephen’s and gave it a gentle shake. Wordless communication was made much easier with the bond. Stephen lifted an eyebrow at Tony, and received a nod and an uneasy smile in return. 

“No,” Stephen whispered, unwilling to break the promise he’d made to himself. He wouldn’t leave Tony alone with Rogers or Maximoff.

Tony then gave him what could only be referred to as Bambi eyes. Stephen had never seen this on Tony before and was immediately defenseless.

“It’ll be fine,” Tony whispered, and Stephen knew he was beaten.

Stephen squeezed Tony’s hand in response. Then he gave Thor a long look, receiving a nod in return. There was no way he was leaving Tony properly alone with Steve Rogers. 

“Come on, Loki. I’ll show you that book I mentioned earlier, “ Stephen said, giving Loki an easy out of a repeat of a terrible conversation he didn’t need to hear twice in one day. Loki took it, following Stephen towards the door.

As they left, he heard Thor say, “Let’s sit down, the three of us, and see if we can begin to mend what was broken between us.”

Lingering in the doorway was extremely tempting, but Stephen knew he had to trust Tony’s judgement. Even if that meant leaving him in a room with a man who had once abandoned him in Siberia with a broken suit.

“Thor won’t let anything happen to him. Come on,” Loki said, turning Stephen by the shoulder and leading them away from the room. They walked towards what Tony referred to as the library, but housed few actual books. It mostly had couches and Starkpads with anything you might possibly want to read on it. 

Which, he supposed did make it a library, though he still grumbled about it.

“We should go back to your Sanctum,” Loki said wearily. “Research what books are affected by what’s happening and begin a catalog.” His steps became slower, the adrenaline from the last few hours finally leaving him. “But I’m exhausted.”

“You’ve been awake for over twenty-four hours, it’s understandable,” Stephen said. “Plus, you’ve expended an enormous amount of magic in that time. You should eat something.” Stephen felt his own steps slow as the lack of sleep, lack of food, and his own large amount of expended magic caught up with him. “We both should.”

“I’m not that kind of exhausted,” Loki said, coming to a stop at the hallway that led to the library. Stephen looked over and saw the haunted look on Loki's face. He was facing a blank wall, yet his eyes were seeing something very far away. Stephen knew that look well. 

They made it to the library, but Loki’s idea of sorting through the books at the Sanctum while hopefully getting something to eat sounded far more tempting than sitting around on the common floor. 

“I think you’re right,” Stephen said, not bothering to go in the room. “We’ll wait for Tony and Thor, then go back to the Sanctum. We can eat something, sit down, and start looking through the books.”

“What books?” a voice said from a sofa. 

Stephen’s blood ran cold. He recognized that voice.

Wanda Maximoff popped up from a sofa, giving Stephen a curious look.

“What kind of books?” she asked, putting aside her tablet.

A dozen different scenarios screamed through Stephen’s mind at her question. For a split second he wished he had the Time Stone just so he could go back and erase this moment. There was nothing he could say that wouldn’t sound suspicious. If he said nothing it would sound ridiculous. Loki and Stephen had literally nothing in common except magic. What else could they possibly be discussing?

If he said yes and acknowledged that magical books existed that would open a doorway to so many other questions that he could not answer. Questions he was unwilling to answer when it came to Maximoff.

He must have taken too long to come up with an answer because she rolled her eyes and said, “Fine. Keep your precious secrets. You realize this is why none of us trust you?”

Stephen blinked. With so much distrust coming from their own side, Stephen hadn’t really considered that the Rogues would feel one way or another about him, aside from grouping him with Tony.

Except for maybe how he’d punched Steve Rogers in the face.

“Oh, but I’m so trustworthy,” Loki said in a mocking tone.

“No one’s talking to you,” Maximoff snapped. “But you, Strange. We know almost nothing about you, but we’re supposed to be on the same team with you. You wouldn’t tell me about Stark’s necklace, you won’t even tell me about your books. What is so special about them that you can’t talk about them?”

“You know plenty about me,” Stephen said. “My name is Doctor Stephen Strange. I graduated with an M.D and Ph.D. I was a physician—“

“You know what I mean,” she said, gesturing with her hands in a way that made Stephen cautious. “We don’t know who you are. Tell me one thing, Strange. One thing about yourself.”

“I hate Tony’s ice cream,” he said.

Wanda stared him down for a moment then, to his great surprise, she smirked. She tapped on her Starkpad and turned it so Stephen could see. “That is also a lie. At least according to the internet.”

“What?” Stephen asked.

“Look,” she said, then showed Stephen the tablet.

On twitter the tags #ironstrange, #avengers, #tony stark, and #facialhairbros were trending at the top. The posts were mostly pictures of people visiting various Ben and Jerry’s and requesting the new flavor combo. A few were pictures of he and Tony while they’d been eating breakfast, and then a few posed photos they’d taken with the Ben and Jerry’s staff for fun. 

From what Stephen could see, it was mostly positive. And far better than what he’d been expecting.

He scrolled through the photos, the gushing, and heart emojis for another minute before Wanda broke the silence.

“What’s he like?” Maximoff asked out of the blue.

“What?” 

“Stark,” Maximoff said, taking back her Starkpad and scrolling down to a picture of Tony smiling at Stephen. He looked so completely in love, Stephen couldn’t help but stare. “There was a time I hated him, and a time I resented him. But then I see a picture like this, and I realize I don’t really know him. We’ve always been at odds. What is he really like?”

At that moment, Stephen truly realized how hard he had fallen in love with Tony because all he could think of were poems and silly love songs and visions of sunsets. He shook his head to clear it of sap, but the warm feeling remained.

_Love_

“Good,” Stephen said, hiding his smile. “Kind.” 

_”Everything I could possibly want or need in this life.”_

“Is that why you gave him that charm? Because you love him?” she asked.

Stephen glared at her, caught off guard at the question. “Yes,” he said plainly.

“To protect him from me?”

Stephen shifted his feet. Out of the corner of his eye, Loki did too. 

“Yes. And anyone else who would try to hurt him with magic.”

“I don’t want to hurt anybody,” Maximoff insisted. “I know I made mistakes, but I want to do good now. I’m an Avenger.”

Stephen couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You literally just attacked Tony at the meeting the other day,” Stephen said. “Just two days ago.”

“I didn’t attack him!” she shouted. “Why did you think that? I only wanted to know what was between you, and what that charm was! I have never seen anything like it before. I was curious. That’s all.”

“So because you’re curious that makes it okay to touch someone with your magic without permission?”

Wanda looked confused, like the idea of magical consent had never occurred to her. “I don’t understand what you mean. I wasn’t touching Stark.”

“You reached out to him with your magic,” Stephen said. “Surely, you can see how similar it is.”

Wanda shook her head, like she was genuinely confused. “I just wanted to know what it was. I’d never seen a magical artifact before.”

That statement got Loki’s attention in a different way. “Never?” he asked, shocked.

Wanda shook her head. 

The look on Loki’s face was one of total disbelief. “How did your tutors teach you?”

She frowned. “What tutors?” 

“What—“ Loki started but cut himself off, exasperated. “Who trained you?”

“No one.”

“Miss Maximoff didn’t gain her power the way we did. A terrorist organization enhanced her with the Mind Stone,” Stephen said.

It was almost imperceptible, but Loki almost took a step back.

“That explains much,” he muttered. “Including why you don’t understand why what you did to Stark was wrong.”

“But I didn’t do anything,” she insisted.

“You did,” Loki said. “You violated the second rule of magic. And if no one ever taught you the rules…”

The air shimmered and grew colder. “Oh, here we go,” Stephen muttered.

“Rule number one,” Loki said, then pressed his hands together. They glowed a deep green and held a small black dot when he opened them. The dot was a fathomless black that Stephen couldn’t identify, but something about it terrified him.

Suddenly everything in the room was drawn to the dot: tablets, loose pieces of paper, and the few books. Stephen felt his feet move, and the Cloak worked to keep them both in the same spot. Maximoff cast a red mist, but it couldn’t make it past the event horizon.

That’s when Stephen pinpointed what Loki had just created. 

A black hole.

“What are you doing?” Stephen shouted, but his own voice sounded muted, like sound was being drawn into the black hole as well. 

With a devilish smile on his face, Loki closed his hand and everything stopped. The tablets returned to their places, the papers back to their tables, and everything was back to the way it was.

“All magic has a cost,” Loki said, just as it began to snow. With a look of absolute horror on her face, Wanda stood still as the snow began to fall and catch on her hair.

“Did you really just create a black hole in the Compound to prove a point?” Stephen asked, horrified. 

Loki shrugged. “It seemed the best way to impart the lesson. Rule number two: don’t use magic on an ally without their permission. It’s rude at best, and the quickest way to turn them into an enemy at worst.” Then he waved a hand through the air and the snow vanished.

Maximoff’s face was a mix of terror and wonder and disbelief. She shook the snow out of her hair, ran her hands over her necklace, belt, and pockets, then said, “Was that really a black hole?”

“Yes,” Loki said, bored.

“Truly?” she asked.

 _“Yes,”_ Loki said.

In a split second she went from terrified to curious. “How did you do that?”

Loki faltered, and for a moment, Stephen feared he would collapse. Expending that much magical energy after the day he’d just had hadn’t been wise. But he collected himself, stood tall, and—without missing a beat—said, “Magic.”

The stomping of boots and the hum of Tony’s repulsors drowned out Stephen’s laugh as Tony, Thor, and Rogers came charging into the room. 

Thor was holding Stormbreaker, Rogers his shield, and Tony was fully suited. They all came into the room like they were chasing hell.

“What’s happening?” Maximoff asked.

“Friday said there was a singularity in this room,” Tony said, his faceplate retracting. “She wasn’t sure how it was created, but it emitted all the energy signatures of a black hole and it was _in this room_ so will someone please explain what is going on!”

“Oh, that was me,” Loki said with a wave of a hand. “Wanda was having a difficult time grasping a certain cornerstone of magic, so I gave her a demonstration.”

“Friday said you broke the space-time continuum,” Rogers said.

“Well, yes, but I made it better,” Loki replied.

The six of them stood in silence for a moment, Rogers finally lowering his shield and glaring at Loki.

“You see this?” Rogers said to Tony and Thor, putting his shield back on its harness. “This is exactly what I’m talking about. We leave him alone for ten minutes and he creates a black hole in the Compound. Tony, how can you possibly be behind having him here with the Avengers? With Queens?”

Oh, it really wasn’t the best idea to bring Peter into this, Stephen thought. Going by the look on Tony’s face, he agreed.

“Loki’s never dropped an airport hanger on Spiderman. Or have you, Snowflake?” Tony asked.

Loki looked legitimately insulted. “The Spider boy? That child? I would never hurt a child, Stark. Never. Children are for having fun and mischief-making.”

“You created a black hole in the Compound that could have killed us all, including Spiderman,” Rogers said. He stepped into Loki’s space, but Thor was right there behind him.

“It was only a tiny black hole,” Loki said, rocking on his feet. “Size of a pomegranate seed, could hardly hurt a fly. And it’s fine now. I only wanted to show Wanda one of the most important principles in magic. I think I made my point.”

Wanda nodded.

“And you,” Rogers said, pointing at Stephen. “Where were you while he was doing this? Why didn’t you stop him?”

The way he was asking was legitimately insulting, and also Stephen really didn’t like Steve Rogers. But he was forced to answer the question, at least only to himself. 

The truth was, he didn’t stop Loki because some part of him knew that Loki wasn’t planning on causing any actual destruction. Even when he realized that Loki had conjured a black hole, he knew it wasn’t intended to end the world. It was a tool to show Maximoff one of the fundamental principles of magic that apparently no one had ever taught her. 

In a way, it had been kind. And Wanda seemed more curious than afraid or combative now. Thought that was probably more dangerous than if it had been the other way around.

So, Stephen could have said all that, but what he actually said to Rogers was, “I’d never actually seen a singularity up close before. It was pretty.”

“Steve, listen to me,” Thor said, wrapping an arm around his shoulder and trying to calm him down. “My brother is a chaos god. I fought against that knowledge for a very long time, but I have recently realized I must accept it if I am to accept Loki. I cannot try to change him. My brother could be a vital part of the Avengers if we only allow Loki to be Loki.”

“By creating black holes in the Compound library?” Rogers said, incredulous.

“If you’re gonna be doing this sort of thing, Snowflake, I’m gonna ask you to do it in my workshop so I can get some decent readings,” Tony said, finally letting the suit retract. “The readings Friday was able to get were more than enough to warrant further research.”

“I can’t believe you’re encouraging this sort of behavior, Tony,” Rogers said.

“I can’t believe you think you can _control_ this sort of behavior, Steve!” Tony shouted right back. “He’s the god of mischief and lies. Everything he does is going to be chaotic. Instead of fighting him in this, we could give him a safe place to do his own thing. Because you know, if he’s gonna do it, I’d rather he do it at home.”

Rogers opened his mouth to shout, but just then Loki stretched and opened his mouth wide with a yawn. “Brother, I’m tired. And hungry.”

“I will make you a sandwich, brother, and then we can rest.”

“I am very hungry, Thor.”

“I will make you two sandwiches, then.”

They walked off what had—for a moment—been a battlefield, the two brothers leaning against each other, borrowing each other’s strength.

“This is exactly what I was talking about, Tony,” Rogers said. “And your—Strange was here, and he did nothing to stop it. We’ve got two magic users on the Avengers that we can’t trust. One’s a chaos god and one’s—“ Rogers stopped talking as he addressed Stephen, his cold stare trying to find something Stephen wouldn’t give him.

“I don’t even know who you are, Strange. How can I trust you when you pal around with Loki?”

“I wouldn’t say I’m ‘palling around’ with Loki,” Stephen said, his tone flat. “And from what I’ve heard, you didn’t just start distrusting me right now. So is it that I’m palling around with Loki or palling around with Tony?”

“That’s a good point, Steve,” Tony said. “Is your problem with Stephen actually with Stephen or is it with me? Who, you’ve made it extremely clear, you cannot trust.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said that—“

“Maybe?” Stephen scoffed.

“But Tony, there are just so many questions about this guy. You’ve only just met him, and you’re willing to trust him?”

“That’s right, Steve. I’ve only just met him, and I’m willing to trust him with _everything_.” Tony slowly advanced towards Rogers, his lips twisted into a sneer. “Because when the universe was on the line, when everything went down, he was there. He actually listened to me and _compromised_ with me, and he never, _ever_ lied to me.”

Rogers looked shattered, like Tony’s opinion actually meant something to him. 

“You don’t trust me?” Tony said, his tone deadly, his finger in Rogers’ face. “Well, right back at you. I got nothing for you, Cap. Zero, zip, nada. No trust. _Liar_.”

The long silence that followed was weighted and dark, and Stephen had never been more proud. After everything that had happened in Siberia, after all the lies, after the accusations and mistrust from the other day, Tony finally confronted Rogers. The feeling of satisfaction and catharsis was heavy and freeing.

Rogers just stood there, looking devastated, like Tony had just punched him in the gut. There wasn’t even an attempt at hiding how badly Tony’s words hurt him.

But Wanda.

Wanda looked furious, and for a moment Stephen thought he’d have another fight on his hands. Maybe it was the way Rogers had just taken Tony’s verbal blows and not responded or maybe it was the look on his face, but Wanda said nothing. She just sat there on the sofa, looking confused and angry.

“Come on, Tony. I want breakfast,” Stephen said, slipping his hand in the crook of Tony’s elbow, leading him away from Rogers and out the door. 

They made it all the way into the elevator before Tony took a deep breath and leaned into Stephen.

“You’re okay. Just breathe. That was amazing,” Stephen said into Tony’s hair. “I’d ask how you feel, but I already know.”

“Yeah, that felt good,” Tony said. “But not as good as I’d hoped. I really hate this, Stephen.”

“Rogers and the others being here?”

Tony nodded. “Yeah, that. And…” He paced inside the elevator, his face in his hands. “I’m just so tired of it all. I knew them being here would bring all this crap back up, and I hate it. We have enough to deal with right now without me feeling like crap because Captain America judged me and found me wanting.”

Stephen wrapped his arms around Tony, brought him into his arms for an embrace. “You’re allowed to want it to stop. You’re allowed to be tired. It’s okay, Tony.”

They stood there in the elevator for a moment, just taking strength from each other, holding on as tightly as they could.

“What did the singularity look like?” Tony muttered into the Cloak.

“Really fucking cool,” Stephen said.

Tony laughed. “You know, for a minute there it looked like we could actually gain a little ground. I mean, not like we were going to fix anything, but maybe we could agree to put away our guns for five minutes. Steve was actually listening to Thor talk about what Thanos did to Loki, about second chances. And then Friday says there’s a black hole in the Compound.”

Stephen groaned.

“Yeah. Loki has great timing,” Stephen said.

“How’d it go with Wanda?” Tony asked.

“Not as terrible as you might think. She actually asked Loki questions about magic.”

“Wait,” Tony said, pulling back. “That’s what Loki said he was doing with the black hole right? Showing Wanda something or other?”

Stephen nodded.

Tony made a face. “Is Loki teaching Wanda magic something we really want?”

“Absolutely not,” Stephen said. “But…chaos god. If we tell Loki not to that’ll probably just push him into doing it.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, looking past Stephen and petting the Cloak. “What are we going to do about magic, Doc? About those wolf-things?”

“I have no idea,” Stephen said softly. He needed to get to Kamar-Taj to see what needed to be done and help in whatever way he could.

“Do you really think your elder people won’t accept my help?” Tony asked. “Or is it something else?”

Stephen frowned and raised an eyebrow. “Like what?”

“I don’t know,” Tony said, backing up a step and putting his hands in his pockets. “Some people don’t like their worlds colliding. You know, I’m here in New York, and if you need a breather you can just go to Nepal. Which is completely understandable, really, but—“

A swift kiss cut him off, Stephen coming up to him and stopping his speech of self-deprecation and doubt before it could really get started. He pulled back and said, “I don’t mind my worlds colliding. Would be a bit hypocritical of me since you’ve shared everything with me.”

“That’s not how it works, Doc,” Tony said, though he was obviously happy to have been wrong. “Sometimes people need space.”

Stephen nodded and kissed him again. “I’ll tell you if I do. But I really doubt the elder sorcerers would accept your help. You have no idea how long and tedious the conversation regarding you and our bonding went.”

“Watching grass grow?”

“No, watching the grass grow is harmless. This was more like repeatedly hitting my head on a table over and over.”

Tony laughed and ran a hand through the ends of Stephen’s hair. Stephen pushed his head into Tony’s hand. It seemed they agreed on one thing: now that they could touch each other they would, as much as possible. 

“Can I talk to them?” Tony asked. “Is that allowed?”

“They’re not gods, Tony. Of course it’s allowed. I just don’t know what good it would do.”

“I can be very persuasive,” Tony said. “Would you, I don’t know, lose any standing in the order if I were to step on any toes?”

“No, that’s not how it works. I’m the master of the New York Sanctum, and wielder of the Time Stone. No one can take that away from me,” Stephen said, with maybe a little pride.

“So…” Tony asked, bouncing on his toes.

“So…” Stephen returned, confused. Tony was still acclimating to magic on a regular basis, and Stephen was grateful that he was making such an effort. Now it seemed like he was asking to visit the nexus of all magic on Earth.

“Tony, you realize Kamar-Taj is a place where we train sorcerers? The place itself is built on a place of magical power.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, and hesitated. He tapped his fingers on the nano casing, his eyes looking at some faraway point. “I know, but those…things we saw in hell. Those things took out your sorcerer friend and all his students.”

“Zoso, yes.”

“I don’t want that to happen here,” Tony said. “If I can help, I want to. You guys protect our reality. Someone needs to protect you.”

It was moments like these that Stephen felt so overwhelmed with love, and the knowledge that his love was returned, that he felt he might burst. He was truly was the luckiest man in the world.

“I can’t promise they’ll say yes, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. You up for a field trip?”

“To Oz? Absolutely. When should we go?”

Stephen checked his watch. “We can get some food, then sleep, and head over. That would put us right around the time the elders are done with breakfast.”

“Sleep?” Tony asked, like Stephen was suggesting something ridiculous. “Now? No, there’s no way. We need to address this before something else weird happens. Let’s go now, please.”

“Tony, you’ve been up for over a day. And after what we just went through, I really think we should sleep,” Stephen said. 

“After talking with the head honchos,” Tony said. “Promise. Please, can we go?”

Stephen sighed and admitted defeat, but only because he still had one more trick up his sleeve. 

“Fine, but let's get some sandwiches with Thor and Loki first. I’m starving,” he said.

“Good idea.”

They discovered Thor and Loki on Tony’s floor in the big kitchen with half the contents of the fridge spread over the counter. They quickly made a few sandwiches, and let the brothers know where they’d be going.

“I’ll want to come with you after I’ve rested, of course,” Loki said.

“Yeah, no,” Stephen replied. Because yeah, no.

“Oh, but why not?” Loki asked, with an all too innocent look on his face. “Surely the sorcerers of this world would benefit from having an elder who’s practiced magic for a thousand years visit them?”

“Uh huh,” Stephen said, grabbing his sling ring and opening a portal. “I’ll make sure to tell them that.”

Loki perked up. “Will you really?”

“No,” Stephen said, and took Tony’s hand. They walked through the portal and right into his bedroom at Kamar-Taj. Taking a bite of his sandwich, Stephen watched as Tony looked around, clearly a bit confused and also disappointed at their destination. 

“I gotta say Doc, I was expecting a little more…Hogwarts than this,” he said. 

Stephen handed him a sandwich, then asked the Cloak to open a bottle of water for him. “We are in Kamar-Taj. This is my bedroom.”

Tony spun around, taking in the small room with its spare contents. The small bed, the little desk where Stephen had poured over books lifted from the Kamar-Taj library when he’d finally gotten a grasp on magic.

“So this is where the magic happens,” Tony said with a smile. “We stopping here for breakfast?”

“No, we’re stopping here for awhile.” He finished off his sandwich and started on another. “The elder sorcerers are just finishing dinner, then they have time set aside for themselves, then rest. We’ll have to wait for them to wake up in the morning. I swear I mentioned that.”

“Oh, someone’s a naughty sorcerer,” Tony said, realizing he’d been played.

“I did tell you.”

“Fine,” Tony said. “Well, there’s plenty of things we can do while waiting for everyone else to wake up.” He grabbed Stephen’s waist and pulled him to his body. “You were a student here right? I’m feeling naughty.” 

“I was thirty-eight when I was a student here,” Stephen said, smiling against Tony’s lips as they kissed.

“Scandalous,” Tony whispered. He started a slow walk backwards to the bed, but Stephen pulled away from him.

“Let me brush my teeth first. They’re going to grow fuzz if I don’t take care of them soon. You get undressed. I’ll join you in a minute.”

Without a word, Tony took off his shirt and started on his shoes and trousers. The Cloak motioned to ask Stephen if he would need its help, but Stephen performed the spell that would undo his belts and boots without a problem before stepping into the bathroom.

“I’m fine here,” he said to the Cloak, who was waiting patiently to see if Stephen needed its assistance. “Go ahead and lie down with Tony. I’ll join you in a minute.”

Rinsing off his face and brushing his teeth made everything feel just a little bit better, even though they were facing a terrible unknown. Tony had asked what Stephen thought would happen, but the truth was he had no idea. And not knowing terrified him in a way he hadn’t experienced since his accident.

Except this time the consequences wouldn’t only influence him. If Loki was correct, all of magic was at stake.

Stephen dawdled for another moment before going back into the bedroom. Just like he’d expected, Tony was fast asleep in the little bed, the Cloak covering him from chin to toe like the warmest of blankets. 

Kamar-Taj was cold in the evenings, and fear had creeped over Stephen, chilling him to the core. He didn’t wait another moment, quickly crawling into bed with Tony, wrapping his arms around him and being embraced in return.

Tomorrow he’d introduce Tony to the place that had given Stephen a new purpose in life when he’d been lost. He concentrated on that warm thought while all the cold of the unknown hovered around the edges of his mind, and drifted off to sleep.

*

Mundane tasks were no issue for Friday. With her programing she could manage a hundred complicated tasks all at the same time. So, while she was monitoring the health and safety of Boss and Doctor Strange in Nepal, she was also sending a text to Pepper for Thor, researching black holes for Wanda, looking up diplomatic immunity clauses for Steve Rogers, playing a video game with Peter, and buying poorly-made, off-brand Captain America action figures for Loki.

Everything was running smoothly at the Compound.

Down in Boss’ workshop she was running routine maintenance on the suits when the signal Boss had sent to the Benetar was interrupted. The signal had been making its way to Quill for the past day, and unless they were very close, it was unlikely it would have reached them this soon.

It took her 1/100th of a second to discover the problem wasn’t with the signal, but she ran the diagnostic again and then a third time because it couldn’t be true. The issue wasn’t with the signal, it was with the target.

The Benetar’s communications system was down.

Friday ran the probability on over a thousand different scenarios, but in the end there were only two. Either something had shut down the Benetar’s communication system—or perhaps the Benetar itself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea that Loki is not the god of lies but the god of stories comes directly from 616.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. Also, thank you glaucous_atlanticus for much-needed ideas on the last few ending paragraphs.
> 
> If anyone wants to speculate, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	18. Look Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lovely vacation! Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter. I know it was kind of a slow one, so I appreciate letting me know what you thought. We're getting to the meatier part of the story, so no breaks now! Next chapter will be up in a week.

Tony woke up warm and wrapped in the smell of tea and old books. He smiled into the nape of Stephen’s neck and cuddled him closer. This was only the third time he’d woken up like this, but it already felt like being home. 

His eyes popped open.

Being in bed with Stephen may have felt like home, but Tony abruptly remembered he definitely wasn’t at the Compound right now. The last thing he remembered was getting undressed and waiting for Stephen in bed.

He picked up the Cloak and a thin blanket and checked. 

Yup, definitely naked.

“You sneaky old wizard,” Tony whispered into Stephen’s hair. He held his breath as Stephen shifted a little in his sleep, but then his breathing evened out again.

“You get an eyeful at some point in the night, Red?”

The Cloak picked up a part of its collar and shook it ‘no.’

“Well, you can’t win ‘em all.”

The Cloak bopped him on the nose and resumed being the warmest blanket. 

Tony was tempted to stay in bed and enjoy having that lie-in with Stephen he didn’t get the other day, but he was hungry and he had things to do. He looked around the sparse room, really not all that surprised when he found an electric kettle and tea cup but not a coffee maker.

Oh, well. At least Stephen had a few comforts while he was living at Hogwarts. He slipped on his shorts and went to the window.

A soft morning light was peeking through the shutters, and Tony motioned for the Cloak to cover Stephen’s eyes so he could open them.

The view was amazing. The first thing he noticed was the mountains in the distance, snow-capped and absolutely majestic compared to the hills in California. The second thing he noticed was that Stephen’s room faced a courtyard where there were already students practicing magic.

He expected to feel that familiar uncertainty and fear, but maybe he really was adjusting because all he felt was fascinated and appreciative of their skill as he watched them.

The third thing he noticed were some workmen putting down pipe in a far corner of the courtyard, near what appeared to be a newly renovated building. He was surprised he didn’t notice them sooner, what with the stark contrast of the men in work clothes versus the tunics and robes the sorcerers wore. But then again, gorgeous mountains and people practicing sorcery might be more eye-catching than regular folks laying down pipe.

The only thing that could ruin such a gorgeous morning was the threat that was laying over it.  
The memory of those wolf-things and the fear in Loki’s eyes were enough to finish getting dressed and get his head back in the game. Despite all the beauty, tranquility, and activity of Kamar-Taj, the memory of those beasts and the fear and uncertainty surrounding magic swarmed Tony like a plague.

And that wasn’t the only thing swarming Tony. His stomach grumbled, and he was already starting to feel the caffeine withdrawal. 

Right. Attain food and fuel, then he’d be ready to take on Dumbledore, Merlin, and Gandalf, combined. Those elder sorcerers wouldn’t know what hit them. He’d engage a full charm offensive, and if that didn’t work he’d pull out his biggest weapon: bribery. He slipped on his shoes and sunglasses and made for the door when he heard a familiar swoop.

“Oh, hey, no,” he whispered to the Cloak. “Stay with Stephen. Wouldn’t want him to get cold, right?” 

The Cloak seemed to consider this for a minute before shaking its collar and staying by Tony’s side.

“What? Don’t trust me to walk around on my own?”

Again, the Cloak was still for a moment before it shook its collar again, then attached itself to Tony’s shoulders.

“Well, if you’re gonna be that way about it. Why don’t you tell me how you really feel, Red?” 

He walked over to the little desk, slowly opening the top drawer as quietly as he could. Finding a notepad and pencil, he wrote ‘went to find breakfast, you sneak’ and left it on Stephen’s bedside table.

Stephen’s room opened up into a long corridor of what he imagined was a dormitory of sorts. He walked the long hallway then down the stairs, noting that even though there was definitely no breeze in the building the Cloak was billowing behind him anyway.

“I knew you did that on purpose,” he said. Not that he minded at all. As Iron Man, he knew he looked intimidating. Hell, when he walked around in what he thought of as his regular clothes he knew he was intimidating. 

But walking around by himself in a place filled with magic made him more than a little nervous. As much as he knew he needed to get used to magic for Stephen, he was starting to regret the decision of walking around on his own by the time he made it outside. So if the Cloak wanted to walk with him and billow impressively that was fine by Tony. 

“Okay,” he said to the Cloak. “Where’s breakfast? Do they have coffee here? Wait, I know they have coffee here. I definitely remember Pepper telling me we were drinking Nepalese coffee before. Point me to the coffee.”

The Cloak stayed still for a moment before it patted Tony on the shoulder and pointed east.

Right next to a building that had about a dozen or so sorcerers standing around talking.

Tony took a deep breath and remembered that he was doing this for Stephen, that he was here because his world might be in danger and therefore Stephen might be in danger.

But, most importantly, he really needed coffee or there was a good chance his head might just fall clean off his shoulders.

“Okay,” he whispered to himself and started walking.

The first person he passed on his way to the building stopped and stared at him as he walked by. This was something he would have normally ignored if he’d been in New York—he was Tony Stark after all—but this wasn’t the type of staring he was used to. 

Tony stopped like he was on autopilot and said, “Good morning.”

The woman seemed startled that he’d spoken to her. “Good morning, Dr. Stark,” she said. “Domo arigatou gozaimasu.”

Tony wasn’t fluent but he knew enough Japanese to know he was being thanked for something, but he had no idea what she was thanking him for. “Um, what?” he said, then nearly slapped himself. _”Nice one, Stark. Way to make a good first impression.”_

She seemed to be more graceful under pressure than he was because she just squinted at him and nodded towards the workman laying pipes. By the time he turned back around she had continued on her way.

“Right,” he said to himself. Well, it had been a weird encounter but not an unpleasant one. There were definitely worse things than random sorcerers coming up and thanking him, even if he had no idea why.

As he continued on his way he was greeted by a group of three sorcerers who all said ‘thank you’ to him in what he assumed were their native languages. A group of younger sorcerers stopped and stood up straight as he walked by. 

Definitely not the nightmare scenario that could have happened this morning, but it was starting to creep him out that he had no idea why everyone was reacting to him like this. It wasn’t a surprise that they knew him, everyone knew him. But he somehow doubted they were all thanking him for his part in the Battle of New York or helping to defeat Thanos.

It felt different than when people would thank him for his service in the Avengers, but he didn’t know how.

Finally, he reached the building that held the coffee, but the small crowd of people hadn’t budged. In fact, they all seemed to be staring at him as he approached.

He couldn’t blame them. He was Tony Stark. And he was wearing a big, red fucking Cloak.

“Morning, everyone,” he said, then gestured to the door. “My Cloak friend said there might be coffee in here.”

An older man wearing the same sort of tunic Stephen wore took a step forward from the group. His eyes narrowed as he looked Tony over, then he glared over his shoulder at the Cloak. For a long moment no one moved and then the man spat out, “What are you doing here, Stark?”

The Cloak stood at attention on Tony’s shoulders, and it suddenly occurred to Tony that maybe it had expected this. That might have been why it was so adamant on coming with him. The crowd around them looked uncomfortable and dispersed until there were only three older sorcerers left.

There was silence for a heartbeat, then two, before Tony pointed to the building and said, “Coffee?”

“Stop it, Shirsha,” whispered a woman on Tony’s left. Then she addressed Tony. “Good morning, Doctor Stark,” she said with a nervous smile. Tony thought he could place her accent from New Delhi. “We are wondering what brings you to Kamar-Taj today?”

Tony had absolutely no idea how to answer that question. Wong was supposed to have spoken with the elder sorcerers about what they’d discovered while dimension hopping, but he had no idea who these people were. And while they were looking at him like he was carrying a ticking time bomb, that didn’t necessarily mean they were the sorcerers he was looking for.

“I asked Stephen if I could talk to the elders,” he said eventually. “He said maybe after breakfast?”

“And where is Strange?” Shirsha asked with a sneer.

For a split-second Tony considered how to answer the question. The obvious answer would be extremely revealing, and he had no idea if Stephen wanted to tell any of his order about the new development in their relationship.

But he also had no idea how else to answer the question but with the truth.

So, he shrugged and said, “Sleeping.”

Like he’d predicted, Shirsha, and the other two sorcerers all shared a look between them. Damn, hopefully he hadn’t just gotten Stephen in trouble.

The third sorcerer spoke up and asked, “What did you wish to speak with us about?”

Just as Tony was considering that these were the elder sorcerers and they _already_ hated him he heard what could only be described as a boyish shriek and then two voices trying to shush it.

“Mr. Stark!” the shrieking voice shouted. Tony turned towards the courtyard where the three baby wizards who had visited the Compound charged towards him.

“Oh, baby wizards. Thank God,” he muttered under his breath.

“How dare you!” Shirsha hissed. “They are novices and students learning to protect your reality. Without our order there would be no world for you to avenge, Avenger!”

“Right…” Tony said, and as much as magic made him nervous, assholes did not. Even assholes who were as powerful as Stephen. 

Just as Tony was about to open his big fat mouth and ruin any chance of helping Stephen’s order, a miracle occurred, and the baby wizards pounced on him.

“Good morning, Mr. Stark!”

“Did Master Strange come with you?”

“He hates being called Master, idiot!”

“Everyone knows he prefers Doctor!”

“Is he here though?”

“Is he going to be teaching a class today?”

“He didn’t come yesterday!”

“We were so worried, but there was no news from New York!”

“We even checked the tabloids!”

“Are there really mutant alligators in the sewers?”

The two lady baby wizards smacked the boy on the head in perfect synchrony.

“Good morning, Master Bhattarai, Master Devi, Master Ouattara,” said a deep and familiar voice to Tony’s right.

 _Oh, thank God_.

“Good morning, Tony,” Stephen said, then gave Tony a chaste kiss.

Well, that answered that question.

The three elder sorcerers looked like they’d just been hit over the head with Thor’s hammer while the baby wizards were shout-whispering different variations of ‘I told you so’ ‘no _I_ told you so.’

“What were we discussing?” Stephen asked, though something told Tony he’d known exactly what he’d just walked into.

“We were just asking Doctor Stark what brought him to Kamar-Taj today,” Master Devi said. If Tony hadn’t spent the majority of his life having people lie to his face, he might not have noticed her false cheer.

“I take it you received Wong’s report?” Stephen asked.

“We did,” Master Bhattarai said in a low voice. “But I fail to understand how your bondmate enters into this.”

_Annoyance_

_Anger_

_Exasperation_

Stephen kept his expression absolutely stone-faced towards the elders, then turned to the baby wizards. “Ayesha,” he said, addressing one of the lady wizards. “Would you please take Mr. Stark to get some breakfast? I’m afraid he might implode if he doesn’t have coffee soon.”

The Cloak tapped Stephen on the shoulder, but Stephen shook his head and the Cloak remained on Tony’s shoulders.

“Yes, Doctor Strange,” Ayesha said happily and practically skipped over to Tony, grabbing his arm and pulling him along with her towards the building behind them. The other two baby wizards ran after them, and Tony was grateful for the reprieve Stephen had given him. Even though it meant that he was dealing with the elders alone right now.

“We have excellent coffee here, Mr. Stark,” Ayesha said, opening the double doors to the building and into a large and crowded hall with three long tables. “Have you ever had breakfast in Nepal?”

“Um,” he said as he tried to stretch his memory. “Probably? The 90s are kind of a blur for me, to be honest. I’m sure whatever you’re having will be fine. Just. Coffee.” He’d go back and provide backup for Stephen but please please please coffee first.

As he walked towards an empty spot in one of the tables, entire groups of sorcerers stood for him, some nodding, some saying thank you, but each of them acknowledging him in some way.

Tony was just about to ask what exactly that was about—and damn his chances of getting an audience with the elders—when some kind deity (Thor? Thor likes him) placed a cup of coffee with a full service on a table right in front of him. He plopped onto the long bench and poured a cup, the smell emanating from his cup already giving him life.

“Do you like your eggs spicy, Mr. Stark?” the boy baby wizard asked. “I ask only because Doctor Strange doesn’t like his eggs spicy. He said too much spice too early in the morning upsets his stomach.”

 _”Good to know_ ,” Tony thought then took the first sip of coffee.

Manna from heaven. The skies opened up and put this in Tony’s hands special-like. A few more sips of this and he’d be in fighting shape.

Wait, someone had asked him something.

“Oh, um… Eggs? Spicy is fine. Seriously, whatever you three are having is great. I’m easy.”

The boy seemed to vibrate in his spot and his face lit up like the sun. “I’ll be right back!” he shouted and ran off towards what Tony assumed were the kitchens.

“Where did, um…” Tony said, then realized he had no idea the names of the other two baby wizards.

“Maria?” Ayesha asked.

“Yeah, where did Maria go? And what’s his name?”

“George. Maria went to get breakfast for the three of us.” She smiled with all her teeth, and her face lit up like the sun. “We are so excited to have you here, Mr. Stark! Your kindness and generosity to our order is…oh, wow George is already back.”

“I got you a little bit of everything, Mr. Stark. And for Doctor Strange, too!” George said, a little too loud even in the crowded hall. “Spicy for you, not spicy for Doctor Strange.”

“Thanks, kid,” he said and examined his plate. There were eggs, beans, and what looked like a donut. He was all for donuts for breakfast. He picked that up first and dug in.

“Well, that was tedious,” he heard Stephen say as he sat at his side.

“Hey, baby,” Tony greeted him. “George got us breakfast.”

“Ah, excellent. Thank you, George,” he said, grabbing a cup of tea Tony hadn’t noticed was also on the coffee service. As Stephen began to eat, Maria finally returned with a large plate for the baby wizards to share. 

Which they did.

While standing up.

And staring at Tony and Stephen.

“Um,” Tony said, finishing off his donut. “Is this a cultural difference I’m not getting? Do they have to stand like this?”

Stephen looked up and noticed the three of them standing around staring at them, and gave them a suspicious glare. 

“Sit down, all of you,” he said plainly. “Eat. I’m going to be giving your lesson soon, and you’ll regret it if you don’t.”

With that, the baby wizards tucked into their meal, still stealing glances at Tony and Stephen. But it wasn’t until Tony speared the first bite of his spicy eggs that the three of them put their food down and seemed to hold their breath.

Tony was having flashbacks to being the skinny fifteen year old at the MIT cafeteria.

“What?” Tony said. “Did you spit in this?”

“My God, no!” George said, looking horrified. 

“Put a potion in it? Is my hair gonna turn pink or something? Cause honestly, I would look great with pink hair so the joke would be on you.”

“I’m sure George didn’t put anything in your food, Tony,” Stephen said.

“I did put spice in it, but I asked first!” George said.

Tony took a bite of the eggs. They were pretty spicy, but Tony liked them that way. He hummed around his fork and nodded to George. “They’re good. Thanks, George.”

“You’re welcome, Mr. Stark!” George said.

Then the three baby wizards sat without eating and stared at Stephen like they were waiting for his head to explode.

At first Stephen did the same thing Tony did, he looked at his food suspiciously as though it had been tampered with. Then he looked from his own plate to Tony’s and rolled his eyes.

“Okay, off to the kid’s table, you three. Shoo,” Stephen said.

The three baby wizards groaned and whined in unison.

“It was George’s idea!”

“It was not. It was all of ours.”

“But you were the one who came up with it!”

“I was only curious!”

“We didn’t mean to be rude, Doctor Strange!”

“Yes, please don’t be angry.”

“I’m not angry,” Stephen said. “I just want to eat breakfast in peace. Go on, now.”

Tony hid his smile under his hand with the pretext of being _very disappointed_ , when he’d actually been tickled pink to hear a Midwestern-ism come from Stephen’s mouth.

Still, there were so many questions he wanted to ask as they walked away.

“So, what…”

“They were trying to see if I would react to you eating spicy food,” Stephen said.

“Um, what?”

“Because we’re bonded. They wanted to see if you eating spicy food would affect me. Sneaky little things.”

“Ha!” Tony said, and recalled the barrage of questions the baby wizards had hurled at him that day at the Compound. To his everlasting disappointment, Tony could not taste it when Stephen ate ice cream. “Cute. Speaking of sneaky,” Tony said around his last bite of beans. “Someone tricked me into eight hours of sleep last night.”

“Six,” Stephen said. “Not nearly enough as far as I’m concerned. And I did not trick you, you just fell asleep.”

“The Cloak said it snuck a peek,” Tony said, rubbing his shoulder against Stephen’s with the Cloak between them, “you know like the pervert it is.”

The Cloak vibrated in shock and indignation and smacked Tony right on the head.

“See? It can’t get enough of me.”

“The Cloak has been known to have questionable tastes,” Stephen said, teasing him.

“Oh, Doctor Strange,” Tony said, slowly sliding his hand across Stephen’s thigh under the table, giving Stephen every opportunity to pull away. He didn’t. “Do I have to prove myself to you? I thought I did a fairly good job of it the other night.”

“Which other night?” Stephen asked into his tea cup. “Hmm, I can’t recall.”

“Oh, baby, you keep that up, I’m gonna take you out back and screw you.”

Stephen laughed and laced their fingers together over his thigh. “What a terrible threat.”

Tony took another sip of his coffee. “Keep it up.” 

Stephen took his hand back and sipped his tea. 

Tony released it reluctantly, but that reminded him about something else that had surprised him.

“Gotta admit, I was not expecting the PDA in front of the grumpy old people,” he said.

Stephen lifted an eyebrow and took another bite of his eggs. “Did you think I would deny you?”

“No,” Tony said. “Not if someone asked you directly. But you didn’t need to show your hand, the way you did.”

Stephen’s fork made a clattering sound as it settled against his plate. He stared into his tea cup for a moment, then looked around the room and so many eyes concentrated on them. 

“Maybe I haven’t made this clear enough. If I haven’t, I’m sorry.” He waited until he had Tony’s undivided attention, their eyes meeting in a crowded hall over a plate of beans. “I think you’re the bravest and most selfless man I’ve ever met, and I’m extremely proud to be your bondmate. Sometimes I don’t want the entire world to know my personal affairs, but that doesn’t mean I’m ashamed of you. Far from it.” 

He fiddled with his plate and let his eyes fall to the table. “And more than that, I wanted them to know that you chose to be with me, beyond what the bonding required.” He picked up his fork again. “That you’re with me of your own free will.”

The sun shined just a little brighter just then. The coffee smelled stronger and the noise of the crowded hall seemed to quiet just a little bit. For a moment, it was just the two of them.

“Stephen, baby…”

“Plus, it really pissed them off.”

Tony barked out a laugh and looked at Stephen over his glasses. “You had to ruin it, didn’t you? Couldn’t leave a tender moment alone?”

“Billy Joel, An Innocent Man, side A, 1984.”

Tony almost fell out of his chair. “Okay, where did that come from, and why is it so hot?”

Stephen laughed and reached out a hand along the table to take Tony’s. They sat in silence for a few moments, trying to ignore the amount of eyes on them.

“I admit I was surprised to find you gone this morning. I would have thought you’d want an escort for all this,” he said, gesturing around.

“That is blatant Cloak erasure, and I will not stand for it.”

“Still,” Stephen laughed. His expression turned somber, and he stabbed at his eggs. “What did they say to you before I got there?”

“Nothing too terrible, just vaguely menacing, that sort of thing. What’d they say after I left? Will they talk with me?”

Stephen sighed and put down his tea cup. Tony could feel his anger and frustration and ran his fingers lightly over Stephen’s hand. 

“Yes, after I’m done teaching the novices this morning.”

Surprise overtook Tony for a moment. “Even after Wong’s report? Even after actual spells aren’t working, books are going blank? They’re going to, what? Punish you before I can talk to them?”

Stephen shook his head. “Not so much a punishment, exactly. I missed the class yesterday, and they aren’t happy with me.”

“Yesterday?” Tony looked around the dining hall before lowering his voice. “Do they know what happened yesterday? Don’t they have a get-out-of-lessons free card for traveling through hell dimensions and being attacked by wolf-things?”

Stephen looked around the crowded hall for a moment, then released Tony’s hand and again drew the sigil from the other day, the one that meant quiet.

“You have to understand, they were hardly happy with me in the first place. I didn’t exactly ask permission before I joined the Avengers,” he said. “I don’t know why they’re doing this,” Stephen whispered. His face was drawn, and his eyes were filled with worry. “This is serious, and they know it. I have no idea why they aren’t acting like it.”

“Maybe the same reason no one believed me when I said a far bigger threat than Loki was coming?” Tony asked. “Easier to bury your head in the sand than to face a nightmare?”

“Yes, but all of them? This is the one benefit to having a council of elders and not just one sorcerer supreme.”

Tony hadn’t heard that term before. “What’s the sorcerer supreme?”

“The greatest of all of us,” Stephen said with reverence. “The sorcerer who commands the greatest amount of power from the universe.” He fiddled with his tea cup for a moment, and Tony waited. “The last Sorcerer Supreme was my mentor.”

Tony reached beside him under the table to take Stephen’s hand. Stephen pulled their joint hands onto the table so everyone could see. “What happened?”

Tony let his hand be fiddled with as Stephen gathered his thoughts. “She died protecting our reality. It was on the day I met the Cloak, actually. And the day she appointed me master of the New York Sanctum.”

“Eventful day.”

“Yes,” Stephen said, then brought himself out of his memories. “Did they tell you anything else?”

“No,” Tony said, then paused. “But I did get a few strange reactions on my walk here.”

“Oh?” Stephen said.

“A lot of people thanking me, which, you know,” he said, then gestured to himself. “You’re welcome. But something about it felt weird.”

“Oh, that,” Stephen said, then looked vaguely guilty.

“Doc,” Tony said, and looked over his glasses. “What did you do?”

“Well, who do you think paid for all the repairs you see going on?” he half-shouted and waved a hand around the hall. “The pipes and the renovated buildings? Kamar-Taj has always been self-supporting, but repairs and projects like that cost a lot of money. Money that sorcerers don’t have.”

“Stephen, are you saying—“

“You gave me a fifty thousand dollar a month _allowance_!” Stephen hissed through his teeth. “What did you think I was going to do with it?”

“I don’t know!” Tony shouted, since he knew no one could hear him anyway. “Things you need? Food…clothes…fabric softener!”

“The Cloak does not need fifty thousand dollars worth of fabric softener, Tony,” Stephen said, deadpan. 

The Cloak shifted on Tony’s shoulders like it wasn’t so sure.

“So that explains why everyone was thanking me,” he said. “And also probably why the elders seem so nervous.”

“Well, they were already nervous,” Stephen said. “Now they just have more reason to be. I did assure them that it was now my money for me to do whatever I wanted with it, but I know they’re still worried.”

“Yeah, of course they’re worried. They probably think I’m trying to buy your order. Glad you told me this before I talk to them.” He mentally put the odds of his charm offensive at less than a thirty percent success rate, but hey never quote him the odds. 

He looked around and found the baby wizards sitting at the farthest table, still watching them. “When is your lesson?”

“Now,” Stephen said, finishing his last bite. “You want to watch?”

“I get to see you in action?” He stood up and flashed his best Tony Stark smile. “Absolutely.”

Half an hour later, a group of twelve students were standing in the courtyard listening to Stephen talk about creating weapons out of thin air.

Admittedly, it sometimes appeared as though Tony did the same thing, but that was because his tech was so cutting edge and also because he was, at heart, still a showman. 

But Stephen was literally showing these baby wizards how to conjure knives and spears and rope out of crackling red beams. 

It was, Tony believed the technical term was, really fucking hot.

“Guh,” Tony said a little too loudly when Stephen removed his outer tunic, leaving him in just a sleeveless shirt, to better demonstrate a movement.

Stephen held up a finger to the novices, a swagger in his step as he approached Tony who was watching while leaning against some trees. “You alright?”

“Arms,” was all Tony could say as he stared as Stephen’s muscled, gorgeous arms flexed as he held a bow.

Stephen smiled and shook his head in disbelief. “Tony, you’ve seen me naked.”

“Yeah but...you weren’t holding a lethal weapon.”

Stephen quirked an eyebrow, said, “arguable,” and went back to the students.

Stephen was in his element. He conjured weapon after weapon, taking turns attacking each of the students, his body twisting and turning to demonstrate every attack with the grace of a dancer. And that’s what it looked like to Tony: Stephen was dancing. In that moment, Tony understood why magic had earned Stephen’s heart, his love and dedication. He looked the most alive Tony had ever seen him, every movement he made, every spell looked like the simplest of dances. Tony knew how long and hard Stephen had studied, how much time he dedicated to his craft.

Watching him defend himself against a dozen novices looked so effortless, like he was made for this. He was so happy for Stephen, so glad that he’s found his life’s second calling after losing his first.

Stephen had just repelled an attack from Ayesha when his shoulders fell in frustration. “You’ll all have to concentrate harder than that. Remember, if you are attacked it’s your very life you are having to defend, in addition to our order and our universe.”

“Yeah, no pressure, Doc,” Tony said with a smirk.

He turned to Tony, who literally had to adjust his hips and swish the Cloak a bit to not give away how much of a turn-on he found all this. The look he gave Tony was so mischievous, for a second he thought Stephen was channeling Loki.

“Tony, would you like to help me give a demonstration?” Stephen asked, hiding a smile.

“Uh, what?” Tony asked and tried to hide behind the Cloak.

“A weapons demonstration,” Stephen said, holding out a hand to bring Tony to the front of the courtyard. “I’ll attack, you defend as well as you can. I sincerely doubt any of the weapons I’m about to demonstrate could get through that shield of yours.”

Any excitement he might have felt at watching Stephen in his element immediately died down. Tony looked at all the eager, fresh faces, all of them waiting for something amazing to happen.

Well, he didn’t want to let anyone down. He tapped the nano casing and suited up.

“Okay, Doc, how would you like to—“ Tony’s question was cut off as Stephen conjured a knife and advanced on him but did not attack.

“Alright?” Stephen asked softly, sensing Tony’s fear.

Looking back to the students, Tony pulled himself together, reminded himself this was Stephen, and that Stephen would never hurt him.

“Yup,” he said, then created the most powerful shield he had. “Hit me, baby.”

Tony must have been paying attention really well lately, because he knew by Stephen’s hand movements that he was conjuring a burning sword. The same burning sword he’d just conjured while on the Crimson Cosmos. 

Tony adjusted his stance and waited for Stephen’s burning sword to be conjured out of thin air…but nothing happened.

Tony froze, eyes on Stephen, who was completely still except for his shaking, empty hands. 

_Shock_

_Fear_

_Desolation_

He looked around at the students and tried the spell again, but there was still nothing. Tony lifted his face plate, and their eyes met.

“Another one?” Tony asked.

“Yes,” Stephen whispered. “But a big one. Tony, this is the Sacred Sword of the Vishanti.” His hands were shaking far more than normal, and he couldn’t hide the fear from his face. “Tony, if something’s happened to the Vishanti…”

Tony wanted to hold Stephen in his arms and tell him everything was going to be okay, but there were a dozen students watching them. Looking around the courtyard, Tony saw many other wizards, including the elder wizards he’d met before breakfast all standing around watching the demonstration.

“Okay, Doc, let’s get through this, then we’ll go back to your room, okay?”

The desire to comfort Stephen was so strong, and Tony hated having to fight against it, having to push through something that was good for Stephen and gave Tony something to do in the face of his own powerlessness.

Stephen took a deep breath and nodded. His eyes focused on the gathering crowd, he conjured a bow out of thin air and attacked Tony.

Tony’s shield took the blows, though it was obvious Stephen was pulling his punches.

“Do not let up on your attack,” Stephen said as he hit Tony’s shield again and again. “Also, do not commit to one weapon. Change your attack when your enemy least expects it.” Tony had only that ominous statement before Stephen conjured a whip of the same red crackling energy and sent it crackling to Tony.

Tony took to the air and hid behind his shield, which took the blast easily. He readied himself for another attack, but Stephen retracted his whips far quicker than Tony had anticipated. 

“This is the end of the lesson,” Stephen said to the students as Tony landed next to him. “Practice with a peer, taking turns with who attacks and who defends. Casting shields is just as important as attacking!”

He barely waited to watch the novices pair up and begin to practice. As soon as they were engaged with each other, Stephen grabbed Tony’s hand and started walking back towards the dormitories, the elder sorcerers watching from the shadows.

Armor still on, Cloak still on his shoulders, Tony was dragged from the courtyard back to Stephen’s room. The door to his room had barely closed before Stephen was in his arms.

“The Vishanti, Tony,” he whispered. His fear was immense and it terrified Tony. Not knowing what else to do, Tony just held on tight and tried to comfort Stephen the best he could.

He tapped the nano casing and the suit retracted, then walked them over to the bed, helping Stephen to lay down so they were facing each other. He wrapped Stephen in his arms, throwing a leg over Stephen’s thighs, so he was as held as he possibly could be.

“Tony, that sword,” he whispered. “I’ve used that sword in battle so many times. If it had failed me even once…”

“Shh,” Tony said, kissing his jaw. “It didn’t. You used it to kill those wolf-things, you used it on Loki. It didn’t fail then.”

“But it failed now.”

“During a demonstration,” Tony said. “Admittedly not the best time for something to fail, do I have stories to tell you. But you were fighting _me_ and you were fine. We’re here. We’re going to talk to your elders _now_ , and we’re going to get a plan of attack.”

“What if we don’t?” Stephen asked. “Tony…” His eyes were focused somewhere else, like he was seeing some horror Tony couldn’t hide from him. His fear felt like a wave of freezing water. “Tony, what if it gets worse? What if I can’t protect myself? What if I can’t protect you? Or Peter?” His expression twisted into something horrified and frightened, expressions Tony never wanted to see on Stephen’s face again. 

“Tony, what good would I be if I can’t fight?”

The butterfly hiding behind Tony’s heart was frantically flapping its wings in fear.

There were so many things Tony wanted to say just then. He wanted to say that Stephen didn’t have to fight to prove his worth or his value. That Tony loved him, and would continue loving him, whether or not he could fight as a sorcerer or as an Avenger.

Tony could have said that he has so much security, Stephen didn’t have to defend even himself, let alone Peter, if he didn’t want to. 

But that wasn’t what Stephen needed to hear. Stephen needed to know that all that wasn’t going to happen, that they could stop whatever was happening to magic and reverse it.

“That’s not going to happen, Doc,” Tony said, cuddling Stephen closer to him and kissing his temple. “We’re going to go _now_ to talk to your elders, and come up with a plan for all of this. We’ll figure it all out.”

“But…what if we can’t figure it out? What would happen if I’m suddenly powerless?” He sat up straight in bed, tearing himself out of Tony’s arms. “What if I go back to what I once was: an out of work surgeon. Lost and useless?”

“Honey, that’s not going to happen.”

He frantically ran his hands through his hair. “We don’t know that for sure, Tony, because we don’t understand what we’re facing!” he shouted as he got to his feet and began pacing. “Whatever it is that’s attacking magic has just taken down the Vishanti! Three powerful beings of magic! How could we ever defend against something so strong?”

Tony caught him on his third pace of the small room and cupped Stephen’s face with his hands. “Okay, listen to me. If anything like that happens here, you will not be alone, and you will not be useless. You have me and Peter, and even Thor and Loki maybe. And Wong and the Cloak. You won’t be alone like before.

“And besides, that won’t happen because you and I are going to face whatever is coming together,” Tony said, gently placing Stephen’s hand on the amulet around Tony’s neck. “You and me, impossible odds. There’s nothing that could take us if we’re together.”

Stephen nodded and put his forehead against Tony’s chest.

“But baby, that’s the worst-case scenario. Let’s go talk with your elders and get this handled. You’ll feel better once we do.”

Stephen nodded and they turned and left the room.

A small part of Tony wished he was wearing his workshop armor: blues jeans, tee-shirt, sneakers, and sunglasses. But the three-piece suit and shoes with just a _tiny_ bit of heel that he’d worn to the Hague would have to do. The Cloak made its way back to Stephen and the two of them left the dormitory. 

It seemed like every sorcerer in Kamar-Taj had lined up outside to watch them walk by. Stephen led them over to a small, but beautiful building that looked like it had a new roof, and they waited for the doors to open. Every eye in the courtyard watched them.

A few long moments later, the doors opened into darkness and Stephen led them inside. Tony quickly realized that the entire building was just one large room, and that eight sorcerers sat in low chairs in a sort of half-circle, obviously waiting for Stephen and Tony.

The silence stretched out for an eternity, Stephen’s anxiety cresting with Tony’s own before he finally spoke.

“Magic is under attack,” Stephen said. “We first learned of this when we were unable to reach Szandor Zoso and his students, and we confirmed it when we went to the Crimson Dimension when Cyttorak’s Bands no longer functioned.” 

Stephen squared his stance and stood just a little straighter as he said, “And just now when I was teaching the novices, I discovered the Sacred Sword of the Vishanti can no longer be conjured.”

Shock and fear overtook the elders’ faces and they looked among themselves. One by one they attempted the same spell, their hand movements matching the ones Stephen made before they all realized what Stephen said was true.

“Somehow, magic itself is under attack. We don’t know our enemy, or their weapon. All we know is that they’ve been able to completely eliminate our most powerful allies. We need to form our own plan of attack _now_ before any other universe is affected.” He paused, then said, “And before whatever is destroying magic comes to our own universe.”

The elders looked among themselves for a moment before Master Bhattarai asked, “And why is Tony Stark here?”

Another sorcerer Tony hadn’t met muttered, “The Avengers have no place in Kamar-Taj.”

“Tony Stark has come to offer additional protection—“

That was all Stephen could get out before shouts of disbelief tinged with anger filled the room.

“Quiet!” Bhattarari shouted. The other elders were silent, and Tony could already tell he had an uphill battle in front of him.

And that he might have no way of winning.

“You think the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have need of your _protection_ ,” he spat at Tony. “Our order has existed for thousands of years. We have protected our reality since before your friend the chaos god was even born. Is that the manner of protection you would offer us? The demon, Loki?”

Tony had always thought of himself as a stadium-seating sort of showman. Give him a crowd of thousands and he could play them like a fiddle. Smaller crowds, maybe not so much. He tended to rub a lot of people the wrong way. 

But sometimes—not all the time, mind you—he could rub people so wrong that it could slingshot around the earth and be right.

“Oh, were you talking to me now?” he asked, pointing to himself. “I couldn’t tell what with how quick you were to reject my help.”

“We have not asked for your help, Doctor Stark,” Master Devi said, her false smile a little more difficult to swallow than everyone else’s honest sneers. “And we do not need it.”

“Call me Tony. Doctor Stark is Stephen, according to some people on twitter.” He could _feel_ Stephen sigh in his direction at that. “No, I know you’re not asking for it, but by the looks of things you’re going to need it.”

The room erupted into shouts again, and he put up his hands before they all quieted again.

“Look, I know nothing about magic,” he said.

“Then perhaps you should not be speaking!” said an elder.

“But I know that Stephen says the Vishanti’s name like a Christian says ‘Jesus.’ And I know their spells are no longer working. And if this follows the pattern, that means these incredibly powerful magic beings are toast. We all on the same page?”

There was silence as the elders seemed to consider that.

“So if our enemy, these…people, these things, whatever they are can defeat something so powerful you use their names to swear by, then maybe you should consider the idea that whatever’s coming has found a way to defeat magic.”

There were murmurs as the elders talked amongst themselves before Stephen finally spoke up.

“Tony’s right. If whatever attacked the Vishanti were strong enough and powerful enough to somehow destroy their magic… If they make their way here, we have to consider the possibility that we may not be strong enough to withstand their attack.”

“Let me help,” Tony pleaded. “Let the Avengers help. We don’t have to get the UN involved. Hell, we don’t even need to involve all the Avengers. But let me bring some tech here so we can prepare for a possible attack.”

“Some of the Avengers?” one of the elders asked. “Which Avengers would you bring? Your Captain that no one can control? Or the Scarlett Witch whose powers are an abomination? Or perhaps you mean to bring your friend, the god of evil, Loki?”

“Um, yeah, so he’s not evil,” Tony said, wincing a bit at defending Loki. “He’s reformed himself, and he even went with us on our little interdimensional road trip. Also, you’re making me want to defend Wanda Maximoff. Stop it.”

“We don’t need to involve any of the other Avengers,” Stephen said. “But if magic is failing against this threat, we need to consider letting Tony bring in defensive tech. That’s the only thing that makes sense against an enemy that could defeat _the Vishanti_.”

“We don’t need to consider anything, Stephen,” Master Devi said, that smile still on her face. “Szandor Zoso has been waging war with Shuma-Gorath for a millennia. It’s very likely that’s how he met his end. And the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have defended this world from far greater threats. Greater than Thanos, greater than Dormammu.” She paused and the rest of the sorcerers nodded at her words. “We have never required help before. And no one is _entitled_ to access to Kamar-Taj. No matter how honest their intentions.” 

Tony let that statement sit in his head for a minute because he couldn’t honestly have interpreted that correctly. There was no way these supposed wise elders of an ancient order could possibly be hung on _money_.

“Hang on,” Tony said. “Is this about the money? Are you honestly about to leave yourselves undefended because I gave Stephen money? Are you serious?”

“Tony…” Stephen whispered but Tony put up a hand.

“This has nothing to do with me being entitled to be here because Stephen paid for a new roof with his own funds. This has to do with wolves-things as big as a house ripping sorcerers to shreds because whatever is controlling them is somehow immune to magic!”

“That’s enough, Mr. Stark,” another sorcerer said. “We have heard your concerns. We thank you for your generous offer, but now that we know of the threat we will prepare in our own way.”

Charm offensive hadn’t had a chance. Playing the lovable asshole was shot down. There was one more play in Tony’s book, one he wasn’t prepared to use because he never thought it would be necessary. But looking at Stephen, at how his entire world was at stake, Tony knew it was needed now.

“You can’t tell me I can’t protect my bondmate.”

All eight elders stopped in their places and sat in stunned silence.

“Stephen is my bondmate, and I am his. Our souls are intertwined. It is my prerogative to protect him with my life—with my soul. You can’t stop me.”

The elders looked between themselves, and Tony doubted they were using magic to speak with each other. This looked like an old-fashioned eye-rolling, eyebrow-raising argument.

Good to know he could still cause authority figures a headache.

There were several minutes of heavy silence before it was finally broken. “He is your bondmate, and we will not stop you from protecting him,” Master Devi said. “You and you alone, Mr. Stark. No other Avengers, no other tech. You, as you are right now, are welcome to defend Stephen as much as you possibly can.”

Tony as he was right now had trapped Thanos in nanoparticles and helped lock him in a pocket dimension for eternity. Tony could do a lot with just his suit. 

A thought appeared out of left field to slam Tony in the gut. 

If something happened to magic, what would happen to Thanos?

Tony was many things, but he wasn’t an army. And it had taken both magic _and_ tech to just trap Thanos the last time.

“Please,” he pleaded. “Please, I beg you. Don’t do this. Look, I know what I am. I know why you’re hesitant to let me help, but please. I can help you, I can help your order. That’s all I want, I swear it. No ulterior motives, just…I want to help. Please let me.”

The elders remained unmoved. They just sat there, impressive and obviously waiting for them to leave.

“This is a mistake,” Stephen said. “You weren’t there in the Crimson Dimension. You don’t know what these—“

“I believe,” Master Devi interrupted, “that it is time for you to return to the New York Sanctum, Stephen. But thank you for stopping by to complete your lessons.”

Tony could feel Stephen’s anger and shame burn within him. Before either of them could say something to make things worse, Tony took his hand and led them from the building.

They didn’t make it two steps into the courtyard before Stephen took out his sling ring and created a portal to the Sanctum. The gathered crowd watched as Stephen held Tony’s hand and they left Kamar-Taj for home.

Back in the library, Tony exhaled and put his hands on his knees.

“Those assholes!” he shouted to the floor. “Pride? You know, people give me shit all the time for this supposed pride I always have, but if it came down to accepting some asshole’s help or letting my world burn?” He plunged into a chair and shouted, “I let Loki into my workshop! Twice!”

Stephen had his face buried in his hands, his fear and worry far outweighing his anger at the elders. At the sight of Stephen being so afraid, Tony shoved down his own anger and embraced him from behind.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said. “I wanted to make them trust me, but I think that was never going to happen.”

Stephen shook his head. “No. But that’s not your fault. Our order has survived for as long as it has because of our isolation. They don’t know anything else. And you are the antithesis of that.”

“I’m sorry I put you through it,” Tony said.

“Don’t be,” Stephen whispered. “I was proud of you. Earth’s greatest defender, and he chose me.”

Tony gently turned Stephen in his arms and brought him in for a much-needed kiss. Stephen sighed as he sank slowly into Tony’s arms, the kiss slowly defusing the worst of Tony’s anger.

There was a loud beep and a red light from his watch.

“Boss, there’s an incoming communication,” Friday said.

“Is it urgent?” Tony was getting a little frustrated at Friday constantly interrupting them.

“I’d say so. It’s from Peter Quill, and he’s calling from a planet called Xandar in the Andromeda Galaxy.”

Stephen and Tony’s eyes met, both of them wide and terrified. Then Stephen took out his sling ring, and Tony was giving orders to Friday to keep Quill on the line, that he’d be in his workshop in a second.

Literally.

Tony practically ran through the portal to his work area that had the communication device. He expected to see a response, but there was none. 

“Friday, something happen here?”

“Yes, the communication relay stopped. I believed either the Benetar’s communication system was down or the Benetar itself may have been destroyed.”

“The Benetar may have been destroyed?” Stephen asked, and Tony had to fight to control his terror. His hands shook just a bit as he took a look at what Friday was pointing out.

“So the new signal isn’t from the Benetar? It’s from a planet?” Tony asked. It was surprisingly not hard to keep himself on topic and not ask Friday a hundred questions about intergalactic communications.

“Yes.”

“What kind of delay we looking at? Hours, days…”

“Approximately fifteen seconds.”

“Holy shit,” Tony muttered. “On screen.”

Peter Quill, looking exhausted, gaunt, and dirty, popped up on the screen. He was in a sterile looking room, most likely a hospital. The raccoon was laying in the bed behind him. 

“Quill,” Tony said. “What happened?”

Stephen and Tony waited fifteen seconds for Quill’s response. Fifteen seconds while they waited to hear their worst fears confirmed. Quill shifted as he finally heard the question, and Stephen and Tony’s hands found each other’s while Quill cleared his throat.

“Stark,” Quill said, his voice hoarse and weak. “We were attacked, maybe a week after we left Earth.” He paused, his eyes going unfocused and his mouth drawn.

“They took the Reality Stone.”

Tony’s heart fell to the floor, and Stephen’s entire body was shaking. He made himself ask the question, even though he already knew the answer. “What happened, Quill? Who took it?”

Fifteen seconds later, Quill said, “They called themselves the Empirikul.”

Stephen made a pained sound and squeezed Tony’s hand so tight, he knew Stephen was only hurting himself.

“They destroyed our ship,” Quill whispered, “but while they were taking it apart looking for that box, they talked.” He paused and said, “They had a long list of places they were going to visit with the Reality Stone. Things they were going to do. Places I’d never heard of before. But on Earth, they were going to a hidden place. Something like that.”

“A hidden place?” Stephen asked. “What do you mean? What kind of hidden place?”

The fifteen second delay might actually kill Tony. They waited for Quill to hear their message, then his response. “I don’t know. Something about…camouflage. On Earth, they were going to a place of great power. Said it was camouflaged.”

“Oh, by the Vishanti,” Stephen whispered, and Tony held him as his knees buckled. “Tony, they know where we are. They know exactly where to hit us,” he hissed, his face inches from Tony’s. “A place of great power. Tony…they’re coming to Kamar-Taj.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I borrowed a line for Tony from No Country for Old Men. It was just too perfect not to use. And the baby wizards got to come back! I hadn't planned on writing them in, but then I realized they'd definitely be at Kamar-Taj. I googled breakfast in Nepal, and I hope I got everything right.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. Their constant encouragement keeps me going.
> 
> Next chapter is already written. See you next Saturday.
> 
> If anyone wants to speculate, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	19. Last Days of Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warning: see that warning for graphic violence? This chapter has it. I wouldn't say it's very graphic, but it's graphic enough for me to go ahead and warn for it.
> 
> The title for this chapter and a few lines are taken directly from the 2015 run of Doctor Strange. This chapter is the culmination of a little idea in my head that wouldn't go away. It's the pay-off from a build up that's pretty much mentioned or hinted at in almost every chapter. 
> 
> Also, I'm not entirely sure because my outline keeps changing (cause I keep adding more chapters), but I'd say we're more than halfway or at least halfway through the plot.

Everything was still. Quiet. Tony’s workshop, always in motion, always loud, always going forward was silent. Even Tony was quiet.

Wait. That couldn’t be right. Tony was still talking to Quill, or he had been just a moment ago. The Cloak was trying to get his attention. How long had it been tapping him?

“Stephen,” Tony said, giving him a little shake. “Stephen, baby, you with me?”

Stephen blinked and came back to himself, like he was surfacing from dark water. On the screen, Quill looked concerned, and he could hear Rocket in the background asking after ‘the missus.’

“Fine,” Stephen said, getting his feet under him. There was no time to panic. He needed to move now. He needed to alert Kamar-Taj, he needed to alert Wong. He needed to fortify the defenses to the Compound. There hadn’t been time to prepare. Barely twenty-four hours since Loki had his breakdown and Stephen first realized something was wrong with magic. 

The last day had been filled with conversations, stories, and screaming at brick walls. 

A waste.

No more wasted time, he thought and again began to mentally list what he needed to prepare. He’d placed wards around the Compound against mental magic, against magic that would do Tony harm. He hadn’t thought he’d need to protect against _monster wolves_.

In the background he heard Quill and Tony still talking. First things first. 

He opened a portal to the Sanctum and stepped through to the sound of Tony shouting in the background.

“Wong!” he shouted into the empty entrance hall. “Wong!”

A portal opened two feet in front of Stephen, and Wong stepped out from his bedroom. “By the Vishanti, Stephen! I thought you were bleeding.”

“They’re coming.” Stephen said, his voice monotone as he stalked towards the library. He needed to see which relics still worked, and which were not just antique paperweights. Before he could take the ten steps to get there, his phone started beeping in his pocket.

He looked at the screen.

**From: Savior of the Known Universe:**

**come back**

“Phone,” Stephen said, going straight for the Wand of Watoomb. “Tell Tony ‘five minutes.’”

“Who is coming, Stephen?” Wong asked, but after a moment of observing Stephen’s frantic action, also began to gather relics.

“The Empirikul,” Stephen said. “The ones who control the wolves. They have the Reality Stone. And they’re coming here.”

Wong stopped in his tracks, looking like Stephen had just slapped him. “The Empirikul? From the fairytale?” Wong asked softly. 

“Yes,” Stephen said, trying to keep his voice calm, trying to control his fear. He probably shouldn’t be surprised that Wong had heard of them. “The Vishanti are gone.” 

He reached for Wand of Watoomb, but felt nothing. The surge of power that came from the Temple of Watoomb was absent, and Stephen’s heart sank. How many more weapons in his arsenal were now useless? It was powerless in his hands, a beautiful scepter that held no value except for its gold and jewels. 

Stephen dropped it on the floor. Gold and jewels were useless to him now.

“What?” Wong asked, coming over to stop Stephen in his tracks. “What do you mean they’re gone?”

“I mean the spells are useless, and I’m sure if we had time to check the Book of Vishanti we’d find it blank.” He shook off Wong’s hand and made his way to the Axe of Angarruumus. He’d have a hard time wielding it if he had to use it for a long period of time but needs must. And his gloves would help with the burden.

“Go get my gloves,” he said to the Cloak, taking up the axe. The Cloak stayed on his shoulders, but poked his face with one of its edges.

 _”Oh,”_ he thought. He’d left his gloves with…

**From: Savior of the Known Universe:**

**come back now**

“I’m going to cast as many wards on the Compound as I can,” Stephen said to Wong, already putting on his sling ring. “You contact Kamar-Taj. Let them know the threat is eminent. Maybe they’ll actually listen to you.”

He went to the pedestal that held the Eye of Agamotto and slipped it on. At least he knew the Time Stone would still work, though he was far more hesitant to use it than he had been when he’d been a novice.

“Stephen, slow down. What happened to the Vishanti? Why would the elders not believe you? Why—“

“The wolves are coming!” Stephen shouted, opening a portal to the Compound. He could see Tony pacing in his workshop, only stopping when he saw Stephen. “The wolves and their masters. They’re coming to destroy magic, and they have the Reality Stone. That’s all I know. Isn’t that enough for you?”

Wong stared for a moment in disbelief. Stephen understood the sentiment, but there was no room for hesitation right now. Some shift in Stephen’s eyes must have made him accept his instructions, and Wong nodded and left. 

Stephen went through the portal.

“Thank God!” Tony gasped and grabbed hold of Stephen. “Please don’t do that again. I was about to take off in the suit.”

“I was coming back,” Stephen said, allowing himself just a moment—just one second, please—to take comfort from Tony. To share the burden, and alleviate just a sliver of fear. For just a heartbeat, he felt safe.

He tore himself away, hating the necessity, hating himself for wanting it so badly. 

“Go get my gloves,” he said to the Cloak, who left him quickly to get to Tony’s bedroom. “We need to talk to Thor and Loki, and I need to ward the Compound walls. They’ll know we’re here, and they’ll come for us. But this place is built like a fortress, and we should be able to make a stand here.”

Tony nodded, then handed Stephen a small earbud. “It’s a communicator,” he said, and motioned for Stephen to put it in his ear.

“I need to send a legion to Kamar-Taj,” Tony said, as he worked at his console. “And inform the UN so they can send out their peacekeeping troops. And the Nepalese Armed Forces,” Tony said mostly to himself while pulling up information on his screens. “They’ll already be nearby, so they’ll be the first responders."

“What?” Stephen asked, tearing himself out of planning mode at Tony’s ideas. “No,” he said, not believing what he was hearing. “You can’t inform the UN, Tony. That was the one thing we said we wouldn’t do. We can’t let the outside world know about Kamar-Taj.”

Tony turned abruptly, his hands barely pausing a beat from what he was doing. “Stephen…that’s just not possible anymore. They have the Reality Stone,” he said slowly, far softer than he’d been speaking before. “We don’t even understand exactly what it can do, but we do know it can alter and unmake reality.”

A sigh, soft and regretful, came out of Tony before he leaned against the console, head down and shoulders slumped. “And now we know that the Empirikul are real, and how they’re destroying magic. We know why they’ve been able to destroy these extremely powerful beings. It only started a few weeks after Quill left, right? With Zoso? All this time, it’s been the Reality Stone.

“Honey, I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but there’s no way we’re going to be able to hide an Infinity Stone, let alone wolves the size of a house. We have to call in everyone for this.”

“No,” Stephen shouted, pulling away from Tony’s reaching hands. “The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have existed for millennia without the outside world knowing. You can’t do this to us, you said you wouldn’t—“

Tony put up a hand, “Honey, what happens to Thanos if magic dies?”

Dread washed over Stephen like a wave, so strong it was difficult to breathe. In all this selfish concern about his own order, about his own value and worth, he hadn’t even considered that. 

Stephen shook his head. This wasn’t possible. It couldn’t have all fallen apart so quickly. There would be no way of knowing how the world would react if Kamar-Taj was discovered. The backlash against magic would be so vast there would be no coming back from it.

There had to be something, anything that could be done. “Tony, no. You can’t. This can’t be what ends our order—“

“Listen to what you’re saying, Stephen,” Tony said, gently taking Stephen’s hands in his. “Listen to yourself, baby. These…these _monsters_ are coming to kill magic users, and these Empirikul guys are coming with the Reality Stone. They’re coming to Kamar-Taj so they can do what they did to your friend and to those demons in that hell dimension and your _gods_. 

“They’re coming to destroy magic, Stephen. They’re coming to destroy the world.”

Stephen shook his head. “Not your world, Tony. Mine. This is my world, and I should have a say in how we handle this.”

“You do,” Tony said, then kissed his cheek once, twice, then his lips. “You do, but baby. They’re coming to destroy magic, which means they’re coming for you. And you’re my world. I can’t let them hurt you. I can’t.” He pleaded with Stephen. “Please understand, I can’t let that happen.”

Stephen’s mind was spinning. He needed to talk to Thor and Loki, he needed to ward the Compound, he needed to check in with Wong. He needed to convince Tony not to give away the existence of his order that has existed in secret for thousands of years.

“What about the suits?” Stephen pleaded. “Don’t get anyone else involved. Just you. Your tech. Please? We don’t need anyone else, right? Just you and I? Team Stark?”

Tony looked pained, like it would physically hurt him to say what he needed to say.

“Stephen,” he said softly. “There is no way we’re going to be able to hide the Gamma Radiation that an Infinity Stone puts out. None. I think our best bet is to try to stop them before they get to Kamar-Taj, that way no one needs to know your order’s location.” He gently cupped Stephen’s cheeks, bringing their faces closer together. 

“But I have to make the call. I have to. They have the power to unmake reality, Stephen. This isn’t something I can handle on my own.”

Stephen placed his own shaking hands on Tony’s. Maybe a part of him knew that Tony was making perfect sense. That there was no way they could continue hiding after this, and that even if they were able to defeat the Empirikul they would still be revealing their order to the world.

But.

_No._

“Don’t do this,” he pleaded. 

“I have to,” Tony said with finality, and Stephen could feel his anguish, his regret. “You’re going to debrief Thor and Loki?”

And like that the argument was over. The fact that Tony had taken the time to even have the conversation at all was a testament to how much he loved Stephen. But he’d never thought they’d be in a situation like this, with Stephen begging Tony not to do the one thing that couldn’t be undone. 

“ _Team Strange_.” Hadn’t that been what Tony had said all along? That they were on each other’s team?

_A lie._

His fists clenched but he barely noticed the pain. His face burned and he knew he was breathing heavily. A very petty part of him wanted to lay waste to Tony’s workshop, take out all his anger and the bitter sting of betrayal while also stopping Tony from sending those messages. He’d never been this angry with Tony before. 

The thought left him before he could even consider it. He wouldn’t raise a hand against Tony or anything that was his. Not even for Kamar-Taj. 

That didn’t make the feeling of betrayal sting any less.

“Am I _allowed_ to debrief Thor and Loki?” he asked. Tony flinched like he’d been slapped.

He looked like he wanted to say something else, plead with Stephen to understand.

But he wouldn’t meet Stephen’s eyes and turned around to his console.

“Friday, get me the Secretary General of the UN, send the Joint Chiefs an alert, and call the President. Actually, call her red phone directly. Let her know what’s going on, then hold the line.”

Then he picked up a headset and started talking.

It had been a very long time since Stephen had felt so alone. Tony rubbed the spot under his chest where Stephen lived and spoke with world leaders like he wasn’t even in the room.

He tore himself away from just staring at Tony while he worked. He had his own job to do. He took out his sling ring, picked up his axe, and created a portal to Thor and Loki’s floor.

Loki was sitting in the middle of several large stacks of books, flipping through a few pages of one before putting it in one of the smaller piles and moving onto the next.

Thor was watching a rerun of Friends.

“The Empirikul have the Reality Stone,” Stephen said, both brothers’ heads snapping to him in a heartbeat. “We don’t know exactly when, but they’re coming.” He turned to Loki and said, “We need to cast wards on the Compound. Now.”

“How did they get the—“ Thor started to ask, then stopped as his face turned to stone. “Quill?”

“Alive,” Stephen said. “So is his crew. But the ship was destroyed. Come on, we need to go.” He started to open a portal outside. “How are you at creating wards?” he asked Loki.

“Better than you.”

Without warning, Friday’s voice sounded through the speakers in the ceiling. 

“General Quarters,” Friday said. “I repeat, the call for General Quarters has been issued.”

“What are General Quarters?” Thor asked, picking up Stormbreaker.

“A call to arms, I imagine,” Loki said, forming his ice blade with one hand and a green mist with another. “Is there still time to cast wards?”

“I don’t know,” Stephen said.

The entire building shuddered suddenly at the sound of a large thump.

And then another.

And another. And another.

“Oh, Norns,” Loki whispered.

“Take heart, brother,” Thor said, wrapping an arm around Loki’s waist and making for the nearest window. “The last time, you did not have me at your side.”

And with that Thor flew the two of them up to the roof. Just as Stephen was questioning whether to go without the Cloak, the elevator dinged, and it came speeding out, gloves in its folds.

“You have excellent timing, my friend,” Stephen said, slipping the gloves on and grabbing his axe. If he used this axe as much as he anticipated his hands would be on fire tomorrow, but it didn’t matter. Not when even the possibility of tomorrow was uncertain. The open window let the wind in, tearing through his hair as he and the Cloak took flight.

He heard the thunder and saw the lightning before he even made it to the roof. By the time the Cloak set him down, Tony had made it as well.

There were six wolves in total, two for each magic user. The night was dark and there was no moon, the only light coming from Thor’s lightning. Stephen regretted the five seconds it took to cast a bright light in the sky when two of the wolves immediately lunged for him. The Cloak pulled him back, and he sliced at a wolf’s snout with his axe. 

His contact was perfect, and he smelled copper and felt the warmth of blood on his face. He drew his axe back to strike again, but another wolf had noticed Stephen, and lunged towards him, teeth bared.

Tony was on the other side of the roof, Thor and Loki were defending themselves against their own attackers, and Stephen saw his own death coming with an open maw…

Before a red mist enveloped it, freezing it in the air. The wolf snarled and twisted in its scarlet prison, trying to break free. 

The wolf Stephen had cut leapt for him, and he dealt it another blow with his axe, the Cloak moving like the wind, skillfully dodging every snarl as he swung again and again. 

“Strange, I cannot hold it for much longer!” Wanda screamed from the other side of the roof. Her face was twisted in agony and her eyes were a deep red.

“Help me,” Stephen said to the Cloak, handing it his axe. The Cloak dodged the charging wolf as Stephen took off one of his gloves and put on his sling ring.

Using a portal had been an excellent idea, he’d have to tell Loki at some point. He opened a portal and sent it halfway down the wolf Wanda was holding, chopping it in half, and cauterizing it instantly.

“Thank you,” he said to Wanda, who was doubled over trying to catch her breath. 

She nodded, then her eyes went wide as another wolf attacked Stephen.

He tried to cast another portal, but there wasn’t enough time as the wolf lunged…

Only for Tony to run it through with one of his nanoparticle swords. The wolf snarled and twisted to snap at Tony when Captain America’s shield went right for its teeth. From the air, Sam Wilson dived, wings pointed down, driving the tips into the wolf’s bleeding chest.

Stephen had just a moment to nod and catch his breath.

“You okay?” Tony asked.

The heat and terror of battle barely muted his anger, but Stephen nodded. Now wasn’t the time.

“I love you,” Tony said. It sounded like a goodbye.

“I love you, too,” Stephen said, just as the next wolf lunged.

*

Peter had taken to swinging by the Sanctum in the evenings if he was in the area. It seemed like he’d been in the area quite a bit in the past two days, but then he hadn’t seen Doctor Dad or Iron Dad since Family Game Night. Maybe he was feeling a little lonely.

So he figured he might drop by. Maybe at least Doctor Dad might be home.

The sky had just gone completely dark, the New York lights drowning out the stars, when a white brightness cut through the night. Peter shielded his eyes before Karen could protect him, and saw what seriously looked like a tear in space.

“Oh, so cool,” he whispered to himself. The tear was jagged, and he thought he could see stars through it. Then two creatures as big as houses leapt from the tear, snapping their huge jaws and razor-sharp teeth. 

“Oh, not cool,” he said, webbing over as they stopped traffic, stomping on cars, and getting slammed by buses. Whatever those things were, the buses didn’t seem to stop them for a second. They just started running right for…

“Oh no no no no,” he screamed, swinging to the Sanctum, but he couldn’t catch up with the beasts. The two of them leapt and slammed their bodies against the doors to the Sanctum, a golden light shining as they beat their heads against it trying to get in.

People were getting out of the cars and running away. Pedestrians were screaming into the night.

Climbing the walls of the Sanctum while not getting those things’ attention was easy. They seemed completely fixated on breaking down the doors. 

Swinging around the Sanctum and webbing their mouths shut? That was a lot harder.

“Karen, help me out maybe? What are these things?”

“Friday says these are the witchfinder wolves, and they’re here to attack all magic users. General Quarters has been issued at the Compound.”

He spun around the wolves again and again, trying to at least remove their biggest weapon even if he couldn’t stop them both. He’d managed to web both their mouths shut, but they were fighting it. He’d never seen anything strong enough to break his webs before!

Just as Peter thought he might have enough time to at least call Mr. Stark, another bright light shined in the night sky. A person dressed in white and red and carrying a really big gun stalked over to the Sanctum. Peter debated letting go of the beasts and giving up on trying to keep their mouths shut over getting that gun.

“Hey, you! That’s my dad’s house, and he’s gonna be really mad if you—“

The door didn’t so much break down as it exploded in a shock of golden embers and orange sparks. There was a groaning that Peter had never heard before and hoped he never had to hear again.

The snapping and snarling beasts were fighting his webs, then the person in white blasted a hole in them, scorching the beast’s faces in the process.

“Hey!” Peter shouted. “What the—“

“Make way,” they said. Their voice sounded electronic in a way Karen or Friday never had. “The Grand Imperator is coming. He will cleanse the infected, and purify your world.” Out of their gauntlet they created a white haze and passed through it, disappearing like one of Doctor Dad’s portals.

The growling of the wolves was all Peter heard before the beasts tore through the remains of the Sanctum doors, ready to tear apart whoever was inside.

“Oh, God!” Peter shouted. “Doctor Dad! Mr. Wong!” Peter shouted, as he swung inside the Sanctum. “I’m coming.”

*  
Thor struck a wolf with a blast of lightning, giving Stephen enough time to create another portal to cut the one attacking Loki in half. No matter how hard Tony tried, it felt like he couldn’t get to Stephen’s side.

“Why are they only attacking you guys?” Wilson shouted, acting as air support and getting Rogers out of the way of a falling wolf.

“They’re only attacking magic users,” Stephen shouted over the carnage.

“Then why aren’t they attacking Wanda?”

Before Tony could answer, Scott said, “Okay, guys! I’m gonna do that thing I did in Germany! I think I gotta better handle on it this time.”

That didn’t sound promising. “You really think you got this Tic-Tac?” Tony asked, shielding Natasha from a falling wolf while she tried to tie its legs.

“What did he do in—by the Vishanti!” Stephen shouted as Scott grew to a hundred feet tall, picking up one of the last remaining wolves and throwing it to the ground.

“There!” Scott said, brushing off his hands. “That was—ah!” he shouted. Thor and Sam flew down to the ground to deal with that wolf, while Stephen, Tony, and the rest dealt with the last one.

Stephen levitated and swung his axe, but the wolf was too fast for him. It tripped on Natasha’s ropes, falling on its side, and Tony fired all his repulsors at the creature’s belly. 

Just to make sure it was dead, Stephen plunged his axe into its head.

It was times like these that Tony kinda wished the bond did allow him to feel Stephen’s pain. That way he could see if he was okay without obviously running his eyes all over him like he was doing now.

“Friday, scan,” Tony said.

“The creature’s skin is tougher and more difficult to penetrate than any creature on Earth,” she said. “The scales on its back are of a consistency I’ve never seen before.”

Yeah, that had totally been what Tony meant.

“What were those things?” Rogers asked, panting and bloodied. Thor, Wilson, and a limping Scott made their way back to the group, as they stood around the corpses of five of the things sent to kill Stephen.

“The witchfinder wolves,” Loki said, looking down on one. “It didn’t notice Wanda because she doesn’t practice magic in the traditional sense the way we do.”

“What the hell is going on?” Wilson asked. “Where did they come from? Are there more coming?” 

“We don’t know where they’re coming from, but yeah probably. But not here. Friday, status update,” Tony said, lifting up the faceplate.

“The National Guard has been alerted, the Nepalese Armed Forces are activating, and the UN Security Council is convening,” she said.

“Wow, they move fast,” Tony said.

“Tony, what’s happening?” Natasha asked, wiping blood from her mouth.

Tony’s eyes met Stephen’s, but Stephen gave him a cold glare and looked away. The space behind Tony’s heart felt ice cold.

“Those were the witchfinder wolves,” Loki said, his hand around his middle, his face bloodied and bruised. “They’re coming here to destroy every magic user. Their masters are called the Empirikul.”

“And they have the Reality Stone,” Thor said.

Loki coughed and closed his eyes for a moment. “Yes. They will come with the Reality Stone, and destroy magic from a place of great power.” He was silent for a moment, then looked at Stephen. “I’m assuming it’s not anywhere near here?”

Stephen was silent.

Loki scoffed. “Are you still harboring the delusion that you’re going to be able to keep all that secret?”

“What secret?” Rogers asked. “We know you’ve been keeping things from us, Strange, but now’s not the time.”

Their eyes met without a thought, and Tony saw the wordless plea, the unspoken appeal to not say a word, to let Tony handle it himself. 

But that ship sailed as soon as Quill had said ‘Reality Stone.’ As soon as Stephen realized they would attack Kamar-Taj.

_“I’m sorry.”_

“Loki’s right,” Tony said. “The…people who control these wolf-things are called the Empirikul, and they’re coming to Earth to destroy magic and everyone who uses it.” He took a deep breath, silently begged Stephen’s forgiveness, and said, “They’re going to a place in Nepal called Kamar-Taj.”

_Anger_

_Sorrow_

_Betrayal_

Tony bit his lip with a wince, and looked up just in time for Stephen to turn away from him. With a slight limp in his gait, he walked out of the circle.

The Avengers were silent for a moment as they let what Tony said sink in.

“They have the Reality Stone?” Rogers asked.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “Stole it while it was getting to a safe place.”

Rogers’ lips twisted. It looked like he had a dozen things to say, none of them good. Or productive.

“What happens if they destroy magic?” Natasha asked. 

“The Earth is left defenseless against all magical threats,” Thor said. 

“What kind of magical threat?” Rogers asked. “Is that something we can handle?”

Stephen scoffed, his back still turned.

“No, Cap. And that’s not all,” Tony said, still watching Stephen who was obviously still listening. “Thanos.”

Everyone stood up straighter, seemed to get their wind back just a little.

“If magic fails, the trap we made for Thanos will fail. It’s reinforced with magic.” He tore his eyes away from Stephen and looked around the circle the Avengers had made. He looked at this circle of a broken team, of people he still couldn’t bring himself to trust. And now, somehow, he needed to trust them with the fate of the world.

And Stephen.

“We can’t let them get to Kamar-Taj. We _can’t_ ,” Tony said desperately.

“We won’t,” Steve said, nodding. “How do we defend against the Reality Stone?” he asked, then turned to Loki. “You have the Space Stone, right? Can we…use that?”

Loki seemed incredibly surprised that Steve Rogers was being so pragmatic, but held his tongue for once. “I have the Space Stone in its natural form. Nothing to bend its power, nothing to harness it. I can transport us anywhere you’d like, but without a device to control it… I cannot use it as a weapon.”

Just as Tony was about to confess his own secret, Loki said, “No stone can be used in its raw form. It would take a device created by a master to wield it. Like the gauntlet Thanos used.” He looked at Tony. “And even then it is folly.”

“You used it,” Natasha said.

“Yes, and I was half out of my mind at the time, and have to do five hundred years of community service,” Loki said with a sneer.

“Okay,” Steve said, holding up a hand. “What else do we know about them? What can we use for defense? What can kill them?”

“I think we did a decent job on the wolves,” Tony said. “As for the people who control them?” He shook his head. “We have no idea, Cap. We’re as in the dark on this as you.”

“I may have found something in my readings,” Loki said. “From storybooks, of course. There’s no history to speak of.”

“Storybooks?” Wanda asked.

“Their leader’s family was sacrificed to a hell beast, Shuma-Gorath,” Loki said. “And so they dedicated their existence to destroying all magic users. They’re zealots.”

“And this is important, why?” Wilson asked.

Loki rolled his eyes. “Because you cannot reason with a zealot. You cannot bribe them or threaten them. You must speak the only language they understand.”

“War,” Thor said. “These beings have attacked me and my brother, and our friend,” he nodded to Stephen, who was now speaking into a portal. “We must be wherever they will next strike.”

“Yeah, we know where they’re going next,” Tony said. All Tony could see was the Cloak on Stephen’s back. “There’s a place—“

“Incoming transmission from Peter, boss,” Friday said.

Tony’s heart skipped a beat. “He alright?”

“Two witchfinder wolves have landed at the Sanctum in New York,” Friday said. “They’ve managed to breach the doors. Peter is defending the Sanctum with Wong.”

“Oh my God,” Tony whimpered, and felt Stephen’s fear alongside his own. “Stephen, please—“

Stephen already had his sling ring out, the Cloak holding onto his axe as he created a portal to the Sanctum. 

Tony didn’t think, didn’t have time to feel fear. He flew straight through the portal with Stephen into the Sanctum, Thor and Loki running after him. 

“Mr. Stark!” Peter screamed, webbing one of the wolves as best he could, trying to stop it from tearing Wong to shreds. “What’s these things’ problem, Mr. Stark?”

Tony immediately landed next to Peter, creating his sword with nanoparticles. “They’re here to kill Stephen and Wong,” Tony said, and realized that aside from he and Peter, there were no other non-magic users in the Sanctum. The rogue Avengers had all been left on the other side. 

Shaking the thought out of his head, he angled his nano sword at the wolf’s soft underbelly and launched himself like a missile. 

And he’d learned his lesson. He didn’t stop stabbing until the creature stopped moving. The other wolf had Thor’s axe in his head and Stephen’s in its guts. Neither one of the wolves were moving anymore.

“Is everybody okay?” Peter asked, from his place on the ceiling.

“Yeah, everything’s fine, Spiderkid. Come on down, Peter.”

Peter jumped down to the floor and immediately embraced Tony, then went to Stephen.

For a moment Tony worried that Stephen might reject Peter out of misplaced anger, but Stephen opened his arms and embraced Peter with relief. A part of Tony was relieved that at least their little family wasn’t completely destroyed.

“Where are the others?” Thor asked, looking around. “Did they not make it to the portal?”

Stephen looked at Thor like he’d lost his mind. “There’s no way in hell I’m allowing the rogue Avengers into the Sanctum,” Stephen said.

Loki looked at him in dismay. “You’re a fool, Strange! How much of this world is being held together by magic and bits of string? Do you even know the full extent of damage this could do?”

“I know that the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have existed in secret for thousands of years, and I will not be responsible for its exposure any more today!” Stephen screamed.

Wong got to his feet, his face bloodied and drawn. “What do you mean by ‘any more?’” he asked.

Tony’s ears burned with shame, and he fought the urge to look at his feet. 

“It needed to be done, Wong. I’m sorry. These guys are coming with the Reality Stone,” Tony said, pleading for at least Wong to understand. “I couldn’t keep that a secret.”

The look Wong gave Tony was murderous. This had been Wong’s one deal-breaker, all the way back to that talk on the roof of Stark Tower. The one thing Tony couldn’t do, and he had to do it.

“I’m going to check on the other Sanctums,” Wong said, then created a portal and walked through.

Tony shifted on his feet. “Stephen—“

“Shut up!” Stephen shouted.

Peter shuffled away from him and towards Thor.

Stephen’s anger was burning through Tony, the sting of it almost like a physical pain. He grasped his own chest through the suit. The Cloak poked Stephen on his cheek, but he swatted it away.

“Do you even realize what you’ve done?” Stephen asked, pacing the length of the entrance hall. “I asked for one thing, Tony. One thing! It was even in my contract, I would be an Avenger, but Kamar-Taj would remain anonymous. That was the only thing I cared about, and you couldn’t even give me that.”

“Strange, your world is in danger of destruction,” Loki said. “You cannot allow a lover’s quarrel to—“

“Brother,” Thor said softly, putting a hand on Loki’s arm just as Stephen shot Loki a warning look and put on his sling ring.

Tony almost wished he would. He felt like he was falling into an endless void just standing there, letting Stephen lay into him. 

“You made me a liar, Tony. You stood with me as I promised only you and your tech. That was _hours ago_! I brought you to the place that took me in when I was nothing. The place that gave my life meaning.”

There was nothing Tony could say. It had all already been said, and everything Stephen was saying was true. Right now there were armies headed to Kamar-Taj, and there was no way this ended with the sorcerers remaining anonymous. And even if Tony knew in his heart that it had been the right decision, the consequences would still be dire.

Right now it looked like he and Stephen would be one of them.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said.

“No,” he whispered fiercely, “you’re not.”

Tony considered that and nodded. “Okay, no I’m not. It needed to be done. But I’m sorry that it was necessary. Stephen, think about what we saw yesterday. Or what we didn’t see.”

Stephen frowned like he was about to argue, but Loki said, “We didn’t see any of the bones or bodies of sorcerers, Strange. Magic was dead, and they were completely wiped out.”

“Exactly,” Tony said. “I’m not going to let that happen here. And if that means the world finds out about your order, well…”

“To hell with what we want,” Stephen finished.

“You don’t want to let the world burn,” Tony said.

A loud beep came from Tony’s suit and Friday said, “Boss, a ship has entered the outer atmosphere. It appears to be headed for Kamar-Taj.”

Without even looking at Tony, Stephen created a portal. Time slowed down as Tony saw wolves attacking some of the same sorcerers who had thanked him yesterday. He was so distracted by the gruesome scene he didn’t notice Stephen had run through until the portal had closed.

“No!” he shouted and ran after him, but it was too late. Stephen left him there, panting, staring at a wall. 

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Tony needed to be there, he needed to protect Stephen.

“Friday, calculate the fastest route to Kamar-Taj,” he said.

“Brother, can you take us there?” Thor asked.

“What ‘there?’” Loki shouted. “I don’t know where _there_ is, and I need a location. I can’t just randomly follow people halfway across a planet.”

“Yes, you can,” Thor said darkly. “I’ve seen you do it. Do it now.”

Tony waited as Thor and Loki had a stare-down while Stephen was off battling wolves _alone_.

“Fine,” Loki said. “But I’ll need to return to the Compound. And it’ll take some time. And far more effort than you’re imagining.”

“How much time?” Tony asked. He paced the length of the entrance to the Sanctum, his heart trying to beat out of his chest.

Loki looked off into the distance. “Half an hour or so.”

“I can’t wait that long,” Tony said, then put his face plate down and reviewed Friday’s course for Kamar-Taj. 

“Mr. Stark,” Peter said softly from behind Thor. “Are you going to help Doctor Strange?”

He could hear the softness in Peter’s voice, the fear and hesitation in how he talked to Tony. Damn, he’d always hated watching his parents fight, and this had been a big one. “Yeah, Peter. If he’ll let me.”

“Can I help?”

“No,” Tony said, half-regretting the seconds he was wasting not getting to Stephen, but knowing Peter needed him too. “No, you go get May, and get to the Compound. Go as quickly as you can. Stay there until I get back, okay?”

Peter nodded.

“I will take him, Tony, then go back for his aunt,” Thor said.

“Thanks,” Tony said, then walked towards the blasted Sanctum doors. 

“Friday.”

“Yes, boss?”

“Get some security over here. No one goes in or out. And fix the door.” God only knew the kind of weapons Stephen and Wong had hidden away in a completely unprotected house in the Village.

“You got it,” she said.

And Tony took off into the night. 

*

The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj had trained well for this fight, Stephen thought, as he took in the amount of sorcerers still standing versus the amount of wolves struck down.

He was more than a little winded and his hands ached, but Stephen cast his flaming whips around a wolf’s neck while Wong took off its head with a steel sword.

They would survive this, Stephen thought. The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj had endured so much worse. Stephen had endured so much worse.

He’d lost count of how many times he’d let Dormammu kill him. He’d had his soul ripped out and endured watching over fourteen million futures on a dead planet. He’d seen the man he loved die fourteen million times. Stephen had survived more than any man alive. He’d survive this.

Just as he thought perhaps the tide of the battle was turning, the wind shifted and the wolves seemed to calm. A deep boom rolled through the air, and a ship ripped through the clouds of the outer atmosphere.

“Stephen!” Tony yelled into his ear. “Stephen, open a portal. Please. I’m over the Atlantic, but it’s gonna take fifteen minutes for me to get there.”

The ship slowly descended from the sky, and every sorcerer still standing raised a shield, poised and ready to strike at whatever would come out of that ship.

Suddenly, there was absolute silence. Stephen swore he could hear his heart beating. The wolves were still, and the wind stopped. He could hear the shuffling of Wong’s boots as he braced himself.

Thunder crashed over the Sanctum, and something like a tear in space appeared in the center of the courtyard. Three beings dressed in white and red armor stepped out, and every sorcerer moved at once. 

Half the spells cast were fruitless. Dozens of sorcerers panicked as their binding spells didn’t manifest. 

Stephen and Wong threw themselves and the three beings into the mirror dimension, only for it to be shattered a moment later. They landed hard, disoriented.

“What did they do?” Stephen asked, horrified.

“Stephen?” Tony shouted into his ear. “What? What just happened? Baby, please, please open a portal!”

“That should not have been possible,” Wong said, getting to his feet.

Just as Stephen was about to try another spell, a man wearing all white armor stepped out of the tear, holding a white box in his hand. The other three beings turned to the sorcerers, weapons at their sides.

Not very wise to lower your defenses in a courtyard full of sorcerers defending their reality, but hubris had worked in Stephen’s favor before.

“Hear us, Infected Ones,” one of the beings shouted. “You will be purified of your abominations by the Grand Inquisitor! He has come to rid your wretched world of—“

A blast of heated energy roared towards them, Stephen unleashing the Seven Suns of Cinnibus, the red, twisted, burning flame consuming everything in its path to the Inquisitor.

The white box floated in the air and dissipated Stephen’s spell like smoke. 

“Stephen,” Tony said, his voice shaking. “I know you’re angry with me. But please don’t shut me out. Please let me help you.”

Stephen didn’t say a word. His hands shook and he mentally reviewed what spells he had left, his mind racing to try to find something, _anything_. He raised his shield and pulled at straws until he knew he had no choice but to use the greatest weapon in his arsenal.

Hands burning, Stephen performed the movement to open the Eye of Agamotto—

The white box opened, and a red mist wrapped around the Eye before he could force his hands to complete the movement. The Eye stayed shut.

“Behold the power of the Empirikul!” one of the beings shouted. “You may now beg for forgiveness for your perversions, though it will not spare you from our purifying fire!”

“Whoever you are,” Bhattarai said from Stephen’s right. “You have brought a fight to the doorstep of the most concentrated arsenal of magic in this entire dimension!”

A spell Stephen had never seen before, not in all his studies, erupted from the elders’ as one. The amount of power put into the attack blinded Stephen in its intensity. 

The Cloak cast its collar over his eyes, but as he drew it down, he saw the Inquisitor raise the white box high with an outstretched hand.

The elders’ spell stopped in midair.

“Believe me, abomination,” the Inquisitor said. “I know.”

The Inquisitor removed his helmet, revealing an unnaturally white face with fathomless black where his eyes should be.

“You Infected are all the same,” he said. “So confident in your magic, so absolutely certain in your power, you never even consider that you could be beaten.

“For millennia I have destroyed magic users one by one,” he said into the quiet of the courtyard. “Jumping from universe to universe. But the infection was never fully healed! Magic in some form always remained.” 

He took the cube in hand, and opened it to reveal the Reality Stone.

“Until now. Now I can destroy magic from its source.”

From Stephen’s right, he saw Ayesha holding George’s bloodied body in her arms. “Stop! Please!” Ayesha screamed in pain and terror. “Please, don’t do this!”

“My witchfinder wolves will eat your very bones,” he said, “and my fire will purify this place until there is nothing left of you.”

“Stephen,” Tony said, then paused. “Okay. If you don’t want to open a portal, fine. I’m in the suit. Friday has control. Use the bond.”

For the first time since he’d arrived at Kamar-Taj, Stephen listened. 

“This is what it was made for. A battlefield spell, right? Well, you’re on a battlefield right now, and _I’m not with you!_ ”

He could do it, Stephen thought. He could take from Tony and maybe it would be enough. Nothing else seemed to work against them, but maybe their combined power could.

“I’ll let Friday set me down somewhere safe until I recover. I swear, but please, please use the bond.”

Stephen had never even considered using the bond the other way. The spell was meant to be between sorcerers. He had no idea how it could affect Tony. They’d never thought to try it out, aside from that one small blast on Titan.

There was no way he could use an untested spell on Tony now. He shook off the thought and tuned Tony out again.

He had a fight to win.

“One more time,” Stephen whispered to the Cloak. “We have to try.” The Cloak nodded its collar and billowed around Stephen in agreement.

“Stephen…” Tony said into his ear. “Please. Please, let me in.”

“One,” Stephen whispered.

“In the name of reason,” the Inquisitor said.

“Stephen…” Tony pleaded.

“Two.”

“By the power vested in me by the universal forces of Order…”

“Stephen, we’re still a team.”

“I hereby condemn you to death.”

“Three!” 

The Cloak shot Stephen into the air, axe in hand, ready to drive it into the skull of this son of a bitch.

No magic, just Stephen.

A red light flashed in Stephen’s face, and he crashed into the ground. Pain shot through his hands like lightning where he’d braced himself. The pain was so terrible it took him a moment to feel the tangible emptiness behind his heart where Tony should be.

“No more magic.” The Inquisitor lifted Stephen’s face with his boot, then kicked his chin. He grunted in pain and felt his teeth rattle.

“Stephen!”

“Tony?” he murmured through the pain, disoriented.

For the first time in ages, Stephen couldn’t feel Tony anywhere. The little engine behind his heart was silent, and Stephen grabbed at his chest without thinking. 

The bond was gone.

“Stephen, say something, anything. Where are you? Why can’t I feel you?”

Snarls and snaps surrounded him, but Stephen could barely move. His chest felt empty, like he couldn’t breathe. He opened one eye and saw the wolves closing in on them, the Inquisitor standing still. His job was done. It was only left to the wolves to destroy what was left.

“Stephen?”

“Tony,” he whispered. “I think magic just died.”

There was a lifeless weight on his back, and Stephen was completely alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. Their constant encouragement keeps me going.
> 
> The line "no more magic" is directly taken from the 2015 run, but is also a reference to Wanda's infamous "no more mutants" that completely upset the Marvel Universe for years.
> 
> Next chapter is in beta. See you next Saturday.
> 
> If anyone wants to speculate, call for my head, whatever, you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	20. From the Depths I Call

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: temporary character death.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who left kudos or comments on the last chapter. I put a lot of time and a lot of myself into this story and it means so much to me to get feedback that you're enjoying it.
> 
> Also, I enjoying seeing some people side with Tony and some side with Stephen. Both points are totally valid because both of them had very good reasons for doing what they did. And here's the aftermath.

Stephen couldn’t get up. 

His left leg obeyed him, but he hissed through his teeth as his right throbbed with pain. He heard the growling of the witchfinder wolves, could see them out of the corner of his eye ready to lunge, but couldn’t summon the strength to get to his feet let alone fight back.

And what would he fight back with? His axe was just barely out of reach, but he knew his hands couldn’t lift the weight. 

_Maybe…_

He had to try.

He moved his burning hands and prayed to dead gods as he summoned one of the first weapons he’d ever created: his flaming rope. He’d taught it to the novices not twelve hours ago. He forced himself to create the sigils necessary to conjure it now.

Nothing.

For the first time in ages, he couldn’t feel the hum of magic under his skin. He was completely cut off from the rest of the universe.

He was completely cut off from Tony.

The Empirikul were successful. They’d done exactly what they came to do.

And the one friend he’d had through it all, the one who had been with him through the Ancient One’s passing, through his many deaths at the hands of Dormammu, through viewing fourteen million futures and being bonded to a man who didn’t know him…

“Cloak?” he whispered through a choked sob, though the heavy weight on his back told him he would receive no response. 

The tears that fell from his eyes remained there. The friend that had wiped them away for years was gone. Its body lay over Stephen’s.

And as the wolves approached, Stephen thought it would be fitting for them to be torn apart together. The foul stench of the wolves’ bloodied breath wafted in Stephen’s face, and he closed his eyes and said goodbye to Tony. 

Time seemed to slow down. The world was hazy. 

The wolf closest to Stephen lunged, mouth open and teeth bared when the sound of machine gun fire broke the eerie quiet of the battlefield.

A dozen helicopters bearing the UN seal descended upon the Sanctum, guns blazing and driving the wolves back. The sorcerers who were still standing took up their steel weapons and continued the fight.

Stephen tried to get up, tried to use his elbows to at least get himself out of the line of fire. He managed to turn over in an attempt to drag himself out of the way.

“Ah!” he cried out as he tried in vain to stand. His right leg was definitely broken.

“Stephen?” Tony yelled in his ear. “Please talk to me. Friday says the UN Peacekeepers are there. Please, baby, say something.”

Someone grabbed Stephen from under his arms and hauled him from the courtyard towards the dormitories.

“I’ve got you, Stephen,” Wong said. 

As Wong dragged his body along the floor, fire shooting burning pain up his leg with every movement, Stephen realized the Cloak was being dragged along with him.

“No, Wong. Please, don’t,” he whispered. “You’ll damage it.”

Wong leaned Stephen up against a wall, machine guns still screaming through the air and into the remaining wolves. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Stephen saw the Inquisitor and his three soldiers run through the tear in space. Just before it closed, the Inquisitor’s eyes met Stephen’s.

He gave Stephen a look that spoke of personal vendetta, of old pain being torn apart again and again.

The smile he gave as the tear closed was a promise.

“Damage what?” Wong asked. “Stephen, how badly are you hurt?”

Stephen took a deep breath. “Not me.”

Wong looked confused for a moment, like he thought Stephen was delirious from the pain, but his eyes went wide as he realized.

“Oh, no,” he said softly, then ran a hand over the Cloak. “My friend. I am sorry, Stephen.”

“And Tony,” Stephen whispered.

“I’m right here, baby,” Tony said in his ear. “Just hold on. ETA five minutes. I’m going as fast as I can.”

“I’m sure he’ll be here as soon as he can,” Wong said, then took up his sword again. “Stay here. I will come back for you.” And then he left to finish the rest of the wolves.

But Wong had misunderstood him. The Cloak was dead. And so was his bond with Tony. The only thing that had connected them was gone.

*

“Stephen, talk to me,” Tony shouted. He sped past UN helicopters and concentrated on the labored breathing—the only thing that told him Stephen was still alive.

The little butterfly behind his heart, the friend quietly reading in the corner of his room, was gone. The void it left behind felt lifeless and empty, like some living, vital part of Tony had been ripped away.

It felt like Stephen was dead.

Or wait, no. That wasn’t true. The heavy, empty feeling in his heart was actually worse. Thor had said that death wouldn’t destroy the bond. That when one of them died, they would wait for the other in Valhalla, where they’ll be rejoined and spent eternity together.

When Stephen had first mentioned forever, he remembered thinking it sounded like a prison. Now he didn’t know how he would go on without it. It didn’t feel real. This couldn’t have happened. No, it was just a nightmare he’d wake from. He just had to get to Stephen…

So he flew past Nepalese tanks on their way to Kamar-Taj and counted the seconds by the sound of Stephen’s labored breathing.

“Two minutes, baby,” he said, not knowing if Stephen was listening. “Just two minutes and we’ll figure all this out. We’ve—we’ve got this. Team Strange,” he said, frantically, not knowing exactly what he was saying. He just needed to fill this terrible silence where Stephen wasn’t talking but he could hear his terrible breathing. 

God, please let Stephen keep breathing.

“Friday, get the Red Cross over here. We’re going to need medical help.”

“The Security Council alerted them, and they are on the way.”

“Oh,” Tony said. “Good.” The less work for him to do meant the quicker he could help Stephen. 

Finally, he saw Kamar-Taj from a distance. There were helicopters shooting a few remaining wolves, and sorcerers using swords and bows and knives against one-story monsters. 

All Tony wanted was to get to Stephen as soon as possible, but he saw Ayesha defend herself with an axe twice her own size and adjusted his plans. 

“Stephen, Ayesha needs a little help. Can you see me? I’m right over here,” he said, getting between her and a wolf. He created his nanoparticle sword and drove it into the belly of the wolf, and like before, didn’t stop stabbing until he was sure it was dead. 

“Stephen, can you see me? Where are you?”

“Mr. Stark!” Ayesha cried. She looked despondent, covered in blood and gore. By the look in her eyes, Tony doubted any of it was her own.

“Come over here,” he said, then helped her to the point of picking her up and carrying her to a small building. “Stay out of the line of fire. The helicopters are finishing this up. Then we can fix this.”

“Doctor Strange—“ she sobbed, then pointed toward the dormitories he and Stephen had slept in last night.

Oh, God. That was only last night.

“Stephen?” 

It took Tony a moment to find him, because Tony didn’t recognize him. Stephen was propped up against a wall of the building, his eyes closed, his face bloodied, and his leg looked…wrong. Everything about him looked wrong, Tony thought. Even in their darkest days, even on Titan when Stephen had been so ashamed of his love for Tony, he’d never seen Stephen looking as defeated as he looked right then.

And the fact that Tony couldn’t share the burden with him only made it ten times worse.

_“Step up, Stark. Now’s not the time.”_

He flew to Stephen’s side, opened up his faceplate, and took Stephen’s face into his hands.

“Stephen, baby,” Tony whispered. “Hey. I’m here. It’s gonna be okay. I’m going to get you out of here. We’re going to go home. I promise, okay? Just…you gotta open your eyes, Doc.” 

Stephen looked like he was trying, his breathing was stronger and he moved to face Tony. 

“Can you open your eyes, Stephen? Please? Let me see those beautiful blues.”

“Tony,” Stephen whispered. 

Tony sobbed in gratitude and relief. Stephen was still there. He hadn’t known, he couldn’t have known with Stephen gone the way he was from his heart. But Stephen was alive and present, and Tony didn’t bother to hold back his tears.

“Yeah, baby, it’s me. I’m sorry I didn’t get here fast enough,” he said through a sob, then picked up Stephen’s body and kissed him.

Finally, Stephen opened his eyes. They were red-rimmed and puffy and one of them was already turning black. 

He was the most beautiful sight Tony had ever seen.

“Hey, they’re green right now,” Tony said, through a forced smile. “Neat trick, Doc.”

“I’m sorry,” Stephen whispered. 

Tony’s smile turned more into a grimace. “What are you sorry for? Sorry for being so beautiful you distract me from my work? Cause I gotta tell you, Doc, I see a lot of missed meetings in my future.”

“I should have opened a portal,” Stephen whispered weakly. “I should have let Thor and Loki come. This is my fault.”

Tony shook his head and bit his lip, another tear falling from his eye. “Nope,” he said, voice shaking. “No. Gonna stop you right there, Doc. None of this is your fault. You did what you thought was best for Kamar-Taj. For your order. No one can blame you for that.”

“Loki did,” Stephen said through his tears. “And he’s a sorcerer, too. He was right. And now magic is dead. So is my best friend.”

“Boss, the SI plane is landing right outside Kamar-Taj. It’s ready for take-off,” Friday said.

“Okay, thanks, Friday,” Tony said. “We’re on our way.”

He lifted Stephen from behind his back and his knees, but dropped him when he moaned in pain. 

“Oh, honey, what did they do to you?” he asked softly. “Okay, Red, can you take him? It’ll be better for him if it’s just you.”

Stephen choked out a sob and then began to cry harder. The deep, soul-wrenching kind of cry that only came when someone died.

Tony gathered him into his arms. “Stephen? I know it’s bad right now, but we’ll figure it out. Together. Nothing can take us if we’re together, right?”

Oh, that had been the wrong thing to say. Because they hadn’t been together. Not when it mattered. And look where it got them.

“Come on, Red,” Tony said, but there was no movement from the Cloak. Tony looked over to its collar, which was normally so expressive, so full of life.

It was limp and still, and made no effort to dry Stephen’s tears or help him to his feet.

And then Tony realized—the Cloak was a magical artifact. It had chosen Stephen. It had been there to help with their bonding, it was a constant in Stephen and Tony’s life.

“Oh, no,” Tony moaned, running a hand over his friend’s collar. “Oh, please no.” He ran a hand over his face to hide his tears. 

He hadn’t realized how much he’d come to care for the Cloak until that moment. He’d been thinking of what he and Stephen had lost and hadn’t considered that the Cloak’s life had hung in the balance.

Stephen just lost his companion. His constant companion before Tony was even in the picture, and when Tony couldn’t be with him. 

Stephen just lost his best friend.

No. Scratch that. Looking down at Stephen, who was normally so stoic when in pain, Tony realized it was far worse than that.

Stephen had just lost everything.

“Okay,” Tony said wiping away his tears and using every trick he had to speak with an even voice. “Right, we’re going to get you and Cloak on the plane, get back to New York, get you fixed up, and figure things out from there.” He wiped his face again, forced a smile and some false confidence, and said, “But first we gotta get you up. Think you can do a fireman’s carry?”

Stephen couldn’t respond through his tears. 

“Okay,” Tony said, looking around and realizing some of the sorcerers were starting to watch them. They needed to go, now.

Tony lifted Stephen and draped him over his back, careful not to let his legs touch the suit. He flew as gently as he could to where his private jet would fly them back to New York.

“Boss, the Air Force is responding to the threat from Bagram Base in Afghanistan. Six F-15 fighters are on their way, ETA ten minutes.”

The large ship that had entered their atmosphere was leaving, and the wolves seemed to be dead. There would be very little for them to do, but Tony had no desire to be around when they got here.

“Tell the pilot to take off as soon as I get Stephen strapped in,” Tony said. “Is there a nurse onboard?”

“No, but the flight attendants do have basic medical training,” Friday said.

“Okay,” Tony said. “Have the flight attendant get a splint ready. And call Bruce. I have no idea what’s safe to give him.”

Approaching the plane was the most nerve-wracking time for Tony. He told himself as soon as he got Stephen aboard they’d be safe. Just a few hundred yards and everything would be okay.

Oh God, why did he have to think of it that way? Now as they slowly approached, he felt like something would happen to stop them. A wolf would attack from out of nowhere, another ship would approach and Tony would have to fight them one-handed. 

The flight attendant opened the door for them just as they approached. Nothing else stood in their way.

The worst nightmare had already happened.

Tony flew straight into the cabin, past the flight attendants, and straight into the bedroom every Stark Industries plane had onboard. 

“Help me,” he said to the flight attendant, not wanting to flip Stephen over his shoulder when he wasn’t sure how wounded he was. It was bad enough he had to move him like he did.

Her name tag read ‘Nancy,’ and she looked horrified at the state of Stephen.

“Nancy,” Tony said, shocking her out of her stunned silence. “Please.”

“Yes, Mr. Stark,” she said, then she stabilized Stephen as Tony handled the bulk of his weight down to the bed. 

“Thank you,” he said. “Get an IV set up, just fluids for right now, but I’ll probably be asking for pain killers at the very least.”

“No,” Stephen whispered from the bed. Tony had thought he’d passed out from the pain and shock. “No painkillers.”

Tony let the armor go back into its nano casing. “Hey, Doc! You still with me? Okay, no painkillers, but I’m gonna call Bruce and sees what he thinks we should do, okay?” He pulled a few soft blankets out a closet and laid them over Stephen as gently as he could. He knew shock could kill him even though the main threat was over.

He hadn’t thought to remove the Cloak from Stephen’s shoulders. Now he was laying on it.

“Tony?” 

Tony nodded to Nancy to get the things he asked for, then returned to Stephen’s side. 

“Right here, baby,” he said. “Not going anywhere.”

“I can’t feel you,” Stephen said with a sob.

He looked disoriented and confused. His hands were shaking far worse than normal, and the only other part of him that was exposed was his face. Tony laid a hand on his cheeks. “I’m right here.”

Stephen sobbed again. “I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t be— Stephen you’re going to hurt yourself. You need to stay calm. Please. Friday, tell the pilot to take off. Has Bruce picked up? Actually, get Bruce on the bedside table screen.”

He took a deep breath and pulled himself together. He had to keep it together for Stephen. Stephen hadn’t lost everything. For whatever it was worth, he still had Tony. 

_“Step up, Stark.”_

“ETA to New York?” 

“Four hours and thirty-five minutes,” Friday answered.

That was so much faster than any other flight in the world, but Tony worried it wouldn’t be fast enough. Stephen looked like he was in bad shape, and without a doctor he couldn’t be sure if it was more physical or emotional or if the one was exacerbating the other.

Although a combination of both was very likely.

“Tony?” Bruce said, popping up on the screen by the bed. “Tony, what’s going on?”

“Bruce, I need your help.” He took his gauntlet and ran it over Stephen’s head. “Friday, take a reading as I’m getting it, and send it to Bruce.”

“Okay, what exactly am I looking at?” Bruce said, squinting at the screen. “Is that Stephen’s head?” 

“Yeah, how is it?”

“Fine,” Bruce said, impatient. “Tony, what just happened? Steve said— Look, something weird is going on, and it’s too much weird at once. We’re already getting strange reports from all over the place.”

“I’m going down Stephen’s shoulder,” Tony said, only half-listening to what Bruce was saying. “What’s going down all over the world?”

“Nothing huge, not yet, but the Tower of Pisa just fell.” Bruce was quiet for a moment, then said, “that looks like a hairline fracture on his right shoulder.” 

Stephen was still crying quietly on the bed.

“Okay, how about this arm?” Tony asked, then ran his gauntlet down. “Were any tourists hurt?”

“No, apparently it fell slowly enough that everyone got out of the way.” There was silence as Tony worked his way down Stephen’s arm, the only sound the awful, heart-wrenching sound of Stephen’s soft tears.

“I got the debrief from Steve. Or the watered-down version,” Bruce said. “I take it what they were afraid would happened, happened?”

“Yeah,” Tony said, moving his hand a little too quickly. “It happened.”

“Go back and scan it again,” Bruce said. “Yeah, I patched everyone up when they got in, but I also called some of our medical staff here.” He smiled sadly at Tony. “I had a hunch.”

“Magic is gone,” Tony said. Talking to Bruce was helping him focus, giving him something productive to do and not dwell on what he’d just lost. “And if Pisa just fell… I have no idea what all this means. All hands on deck, Brucie.”

“Yeah, okay, but Tony…that hand. I’m gonna call in Doctor Cho, get her to have the cradle ready.”

“That’s,” Tony gasped as he sobbed through a breath. “That’s a great idea, Bruce. Thank you. I should’ve thought of that in the first place. Of course the cradle. I don’t even know how he got hurt so bad.” He buried his face in his hands. “Wait, yeah I do. Big, huge, giant wolf monsters. What the fuck, Bruce,” he choked out.

“Hey, it’s okay, Tony,” Bruce said softly, obviously trying to help Tony. “I’ll have everything ready by the time you get here.”

“Okay. In the meantime, what do I do?”

“Let me see the leg,” Bruce said.

Tony put his gauntlet over Stephen’s leg, and he heard Bruce grunt.

“Put that in a splint right away. If you can’t keep him calm, you may need to give him a sedative. Otherwise, I’ll have everything here for when you get back.”

The door behind Bruce slid open, and Thor barreled his way through with Loki slung over his shoulder. 

“Bruce,” Thor said, putting Loki on a bed. “Please help him. He will not wake.”

“Tony, I gotta go,” Bruce said, and the picture cut out.

Tony barely had a second to worry about Loki before Stephen called him again.

“Tony?”

“I’m right here, baby,” Tony said, and now that he knew Stephen’s forearms were okay, he held on to them both. “I’m not going anywhere. We’re getting home, and we’re getting you better. It’s actually gonna take way less time than—“

“I can’t feel you,” Stephen cried.

A shroud of misery fell over Tony, and his chest hurt from the sheer weight of grief. He made sure Stephen couldn’t see his face as the tears began to fall. 

An hour ago it would have been impossible to keep this pain hidden. He gripped Stephen’s forearms tighter.

“But I’m right here.”

*

In the time it took them to fly from Nepal to New York, Mount Vesuvius began to show signs of a massive eruption, the roads in England—the ones still in use since the Roman Empire— began to crumble, and Dick Cheney had dropped dead.

Tony issued orders for Friday and his Iron Legion suits from the plane. The Mount Vesuvius eruption wouldn’t occur for days, so local rescue crews had some time to get everyone out of the area.

The road collapses in England were actually far more dangerous. People were in their cars when magic died and the roads started to crumble. To Tony’s extreme surprise, Steve called to let him know that they’d been dispatched to help rescue civilians. Scott, Wilson, Maximoff, Natasha, the Vision, Rhodey, and Steve were already in the Quinjet and on their way. Clint was being flown in as part of the auxiliary team. 

May had refused to let Peter go. She wouldn’t budge until she talked to Tony, and Tony couldn’t blame her. A very selfish part of him needed Peter to be there at the Compound when he and Stephen got back. 

Tony had wanted to ask after Thor and Loki, but the look on Steve’s face told him not to.

Tony told Friday to keep an ear out for any other seismic activity that the Avengers might need to know about. The flight back was undoubtedly the longest of his life. All he could do was wait, and hope that Stephen stayed asleep—passed out—until they got there.

Which gave him more than enough time to reflect on exactly how stupid he’d always been. To think he’d hated magic.

When he’d first heard that the Empirikul wanted to destroy magic, he knew that would be terrible for Stephen, his order, and how his order was able to protect their world. But he didn’t realize the extent of exactly how much magic affected their daily lives. He never knew. How could he have been so blind? Tony Stark, the futurist.

This was only the tip of the iceberg, Tony thought. Mount Vesuvius was a big one, but what other forces of nature were being held back by magic? How would this upset their world, and how the hell would they weather it?

Tony didn’t have an answer for anything, and the person who might have known was passed out from shock and pain.

“Friday, how are Thor and Loki doing?” he whispered.

“Loki is unresponsive. Thor is understandably upset,” she said. “ETA to Compound: ten minutes.”

“Tony,” Bruce’s voice cut in on his communicator. “I’m going to meet you on the roof. Helen’s still configuring the cradle, but it should be ready within the hour.”

“Thanks, Bruce,” Tony said, and then braced himself for the landing.

A sharp gasp and then Stephen was reaching out for Tony’s hands. Every instinct had Tony reaching for him before he forced himself to not touch Stephen’s hands. 

“Stephen, your hands are hurt. You’ll only hurt yourself more,” he said, hating himself for telling Stephen no when he was only half-coherent.

“Tony?” he said softly. 

Tony grabbed onto his forearms and gave them a good squeeze. “Yeah, I’m right here, baby. I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere. I swear.”

“Cloak?”

The forced determination fell right off of Tony’s face. Did Stephen remember what had just happened?

“Cloak’s gone, honey,” he said, still holding Stephen as tight as he dared. “But we’re going to get you better, and we’re going to figure this out. You and me. And we’ll…we’ll make this better. We have to.”

Something in Stephen’s mind seemed to click, like the fog of pain and shock was lifting. He asked, “Wong? Kamar-Taj? My novices? What happened, Tony?”

“I don’t—“ Tony stopped himself as he realized he had no idea how to answer that question. The truth was he had gotten Stephen out of there without a thought about anyone else, save that the Red Cross was on their way and could handle it. 

He didn’t even check on Wong. 

“Friday, status update on Kamar-Taj.”

“The United Nations is still totaling casualties. The Red Cross has arrived and is seeing to the wounded. The F-15 fighter jets successfully damaged the enemy’s ship before they left our atmosphere.”

“Okay, well. That’s something, I guess.”

“They also destroyed the dormitory at Kamar-Taj. The building was empty at the time.”

Tony sighed. “Yeah, I’m sure that was completely necessary. For fuck sake.”

The SI jet landed perfectly, and Bruce and a few nurses came out onto the roof with a stretcher to take Stephen down to the med bay.

“We’re almost ready for him, Tony,” Bruce said as they raced after the nurses and Stephen on the stretcher. “Thor and Loki are down there too, and I just want to prepare you. Loki’s not doing very well.”

“What?” Tony asked. “What happened to them?” Tony had never really considered that Thor was fifteen hundred years old and what might happen to him if magic died. Was he on his deathbed right now? Was Loki?

“Thor keep saying he’s fine, then gets lost for a while,” Bruce said, taking off his glasses and removing non-existent smudges from them. “He says his connection to Valhalla has been severed, and he’ll never see his family or friends ever again.”

“And Loki?” Stephen asked from the stretcher. Tony put a hand on his forearm as he jogged to keep up with the stretcher.

“Loki’s catatonic,” Bruce said. “Thor keeps trying to snap him out of it, and I just tell him to let him process the loss in his own way.”

“And?”

“Neither way seems to be working. And it’s upsetting Thor.”

“Yeah, I think we’re all in various states of falling apart right now, Brucie," Tony said.

Putting his glasses back on his face, Bruce looked up. “You, too?” Bruce asked.

The hallway narrowed and Tony had to squeeze Stephen’s forearm in goodbye, then run behind them to keep up.

“It’s not fun seeing your—“ Tony had been about to say ‘magic husband’ because it always riled Stephen a little and also because to Tony that’s what Stephen was to him: his magic husband.

But that wasn’t true anymore. There was no magic anymore, there was no more bond. 

What were they to each other now?

The question cut Tony where he was already bleeding.

They walked through the doors to the med bay, Tony already sick of the sight of the place. Thor was sitting next to Loki on a bed on the other side of the room, looking up as they walked in.

“I’m right here, Stephen,” Tony called out as nurses started tending to him.

“Mr. Stark!” Peter cried and then wrapped himself around Tony. “What happened? Is Doctor Strange okay?”

Tony let his chin fall to Peter’s shoulder, wrapped his arms around him, and for just a second let himself breathe. Peter must have felt that this hug was different from any hug they’d shared before, because he stood up just a little straighter and hugged Tony just a little tighter.

“Yeah, Peter,” Tony said, letting the sense of home and family wash over him. “He’s gonna be fine.”

“Yeah, we’re actually going to use this really cutting-edge technology that Doctor Helen Cho created,” Bruce said, his tone overly enthusiastic for Peter’s sake. He directed nurses to get Stephen set up for surgery while still maintaining his composure with Peter.

“The cradle?” Peter asked, amazed through his fear. “She’s coming here?”

“Yeah, Pete,” Tony said. “You can stick around. They’re gonna fix Stephen up till he’s good as new.”

“Yeah, May wouldn’t let me go to England.”

“That’s because the threat is still too high. You’re rescue and relief only after the disaster is over. It’s not over yet, kid.”

“But I can help!”

Tony pulled him to the side as they started cutting Stephen’s boots away from him. “Then help me. With Stephen. Magic is dead, Peter.”

Peter’s eyes went wide.

“What does that mean?” Peter looked over at Stephen on the stretcher, at the Cloak that was lifeless underneath him. “Oh, no.”

“Yeah,” Tony said. “I don’t know what it all means. At least not everything. But I know that’s why volcanos are erupting and roads are collapsing. And why Stephen is so badly hurt.”

“But…the bonding on Titan. The two of you getting married? That’s not gone, right? That’s forever? We’re still a family?”

Tony knew how he wanted to answer that question, but Stephen got there first.

“Peter?” he said softly.

Stephen propped himself upon one elbow and got himself to sitting, shooing off nurses and biting his lip so hard Tony could see the blood.

“Hey, Stephen,” Tony said, then helped him to sit. Stephen leaned into him then beckoned Peter over to him, wrapping his arms around him loosely.

“Doctor Strange, are you going to be okay?” he asked.

Stephen’s face twisted and his eyes—already red and puffy—welled with tears again. He visibly struggled with how to respond to that question before Tony rescued him.

“Everything’s going to be okay, Peter. We’ll figure it out.” He had no idea how he was going to figure it out, but he knew he would. _He had to._

_Step up, Stark!_

“Tony,” Thor said from across the room. He slowly approached their little, broken family, arms outstretched. Tony let himself fall into the embrace.

“How you doing, big guy?”

Thor pulled away, his eyes red. “I am disconnected from Valhalla, from my people. I don’t know how to deal with this loss.”

Stephen sank deeper into Peter’s shoulder, the guilt weighing on him as Thor spoke. “When I lost my father, my mother, my friends, I comforted myself with the knowledge I would see them when I received my great reward.” Thor’s eyes welled with tears, and Tony thought there was a lot of that going around today.

“Now, I don’t know.” He shook off his grief, and gestured across the room. “But my brother, Loki has always had a deep connection to magic. He has been unresponsive since it happened.”

Loki was sitting on a bed, staring off into nothing. 

“Loki has always lived and breathed magic. He excelled at it even as a boy.” Thor wiped away his tears and smiled sadly. “He was always our mother’s favorite. I do not know how this will affect him. I worry he will not wake.”

“I’m sure he’ll wake up,” Tony said, but like everything today, he had no idea if that was true or not. “He’s in shock. It happens. It’s completely understandable—“

Just then, Loki turned his head away from an empty wall to stare at Stephen.

“Hey, he moved,” Tony said, pointing. “Has he done that before?”

“No,” Thor said, walking back over to Loki. “Brother, are you well?”

Loki ignored the question, and continued staring at Stephen, who met the force of Loki’s glare.

The entire room was silent as Loki’s lips slowly twisted into a sneer and tears started falling from his unblinking eyes.

“Were you successful, Strange?” Loki asked, his tone flat and venomous. “Did you protect your precious order from the outside world?”

“Hey, shut up,” Tony said, coming in-between them. “This isn’t Stephen’s fault—“

Loki stood up from his bed and slowly began walking towards Stephen.

“Was it worth it? Keeping your Kamar-Taj a secret? Was it worth all of this?” Loki asked, gesturing around the room, his eyes unblinking, his tears still falling.

Stephen wrapped an arm around Peter’s shoulder and hoisted himself up further.

“Magic is dead, Strange. It’s dead because of you. Your arrogance, your stubbornness—“

“Nope,” Tony said, walking up to Loki and putting a hand on his chest to stop him. “That’s not—“

Loki gripped Tony’s shoulder and pushed him to the ground. The force of it knocked the wind out of him.

“Are you happy, you fool? You absolute incompetent! I told you it was folly, but you didn’t listen. Do you have any idea what’s going to happen now?”

“You’re not the only one who’s lost, Loki,” Stephen said.

“Have you?” Loki said, his teeth bared, his eyes wide and red, his tears unceasing. “Have you lost, Strange? You’ve been a sorcerer for all of five minutes! I’ve practiced magic from the time I could walk! You have no idea what you’ve stolen from me!”

“Brother, please—“

“I have lost everything!” Loki screamed. “And for what? The entire universe is now in chaos, worlds will fall to ash because the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj wanted to stay safe in their burrow? What good came from hiding in a hole?”

“What’s going on?” Bruce asked as he came in with Doctor Cho. “Loki, get back in your bed, and leave Stephen alone.”

“Everything ends,” Loki hissed. “Everything! Your life, mine, your precious order! Do you think it did not pain me to see Asgard end? Do you think I rejoiced in seeing my home destroyed? I was the one who set the fire!” he hissed, spittle and tears dripping down his face.

“And I did it because _all things must burn in the end!_ ”

Stephen looked like he was about to fall to the ground in pain and shame. Tony picked himself up, already sore from where Loki pushed him, and got to Stephen’s side.

“And now? Now magic is dead.” Loki got close, far closer than Tony liked. He forced himself into Stephen’s space, recognizing that look in Loki’s eyes for the chaos that was there.

“Do you think yourself my equal now?” Loki screamed. “Do you think the death of magic is the great equalizer?”

“No one thinks that, brother,” Thor said, putting his hands on Loki’s shoulders. “Loki, you are upset. We all are—“

 **”Shut up, Thor!”** he screamed.

And then punched Stephen in the jaw.

The force of the blow knocked Stephen off the bed, Tony immediately following to where he’d fallen, his hands tracing his face, checking for damage.

He found it right away.

“You son of a bitch, you broke his jaw!” he yelled.

“I am a god, you cheap conjurer!” Loki yelled as Thor restrained him. “You are nothing compared to me!”

“Tony, get out of the way,” Bruce said, hurrying to Stephen’s side. “The cradle is ready. We’ll put him in there now.”

“Brother, what have you done?” Thor asked, manhandling Loki out of the way through his tears.

Stephen moaned and reached out a hand for Tony before Bruce could take him away. Tony lightly touched his arm, but Stephen kept reaching until he found Tony’s necklace and tugged on it.

The amulet. 

Stephen pulled on it now, but Tony had forgotten it was there. The low hum of Stephen’s magic was absent, the protection gone.

“Honey, you’re gonna be fine,” Tony said, gently prying Stephen’s off the chain. “They’re going to put you under and fix everything. You’re going to feel so much better when you wake up.”

Around Stephen’s neck hung the Time Stone, and the clips that the Cloak used to stay on Stephen’s shoulders. Tony unclipped it, then reached down to slip the Time Stone from Stephen’s neck.

Even through the haze of pain and shock, Stephen still managed to stop him. 

Through lips that barely parted he mumbled, “No. I have to protect it.”

“You can’t protect anything anymore, Strange!” Loki screamed. “You’re useless. You’re nothing.”

“Brother, you will be quiet!” Thor shouted, finally putting Loki down and shaking him. “You dare attack our friend, our shieldbrother? We have sworn ourselves to Stark’s family and you do this! Mother would be ashamed.”

Something behind Loki’s eyes seemed to break. He looked at Thor like he’d stabbed him in the back. By the time Tony saw the movement it was too late to do anything. 

Loki pulled a knife from his leathers, and stabbed Thor in the side.

“Oh God,” Bruce muttered. “Nurse!”

“Doctor Banner, I’ll take Doctor Strange now,” Doctor Cho said, forcing Tony to tear the Time Stone away from Stephen.

“Wait! Please,” Tony pleaded. He leaned down over the bed and kissed Stephen’s forehead. “I’ll protect it, Stephen. I promise. And I’ll be here when you wake up.”

Peter grabbed the Cloak from Stephen’s shoulders and slipped it off from behind. “It’s going to be okay, Doctor Dad!” Peter said, through his tears. “I’ll take care of Cloak.”

“I love you!” Tony cried out. He watched as Stephen disappeared behind double swinging doors, as his entire world left the room.

He took a breath, then another…

Then tapped the nano casing, his suit around him in seconds. He turned to where Loki had been a moment ago, but only found Thor sitting on the bed looking despondent. A nurse was tending to him, but he was attempting to shoo him away.

“Loki?”

Thor shrugged, then thought for a moment. “His room maybe? Every time this has happened, he’s managed to slip out of Asgard through some tunnel or other, and I wouldn’t see him for days or weeks. Now he has no access to other realms, and his magic is gone.”

He held the gauze as the nurse prepared to clean the wound. 

“He’s finally unable to leave me,” Thor said. “What a joyless victory.”

Tony heard a choked sob behind him and he whirled around, letting the suit slip back into the nano casing. Peter was trying to hold back the force of his tears. 

“Hey, no, kid,” Tony said, opening his arms. “Come here.”

Peter let his tears fall, full body sobbing into Tony’s arms. Too much had just happened, and Peter had just had one family fight too many.

“It’s gonna be okay,” Tony said.

“Is it?” Peter asked.

Tony met Thor’s eyes over Peter’s shoulder. They both knew the answer, but Thor didn’t say a word when Tony lied and said, “Yeah. Of course. I promise.”

*

Peter wouldn’t leave Tony’s side. After they made sure Thor was okay—which of course he was because even without magic he was still a god—they made their way down to the workshop to put away the Time Stone.

“Boss,” Friday said into the exhausted silence between Tony and Peter.

“Yeah?”

“Old Faithful at Yellowstone is showing signs of eruption. Geologists are predicting a major eruption in the next seventy two hours. The White House is sinking into the swamp it was built upon. They may not realize it yet, but it’s sinking at the rate of two inches per hour.”

Tony sighed. “Anything else?”

“Venice is sinking.”

It was almost too much. The weight of the world seemed to fall directly on Tony’s shoulders and it was almost too much to take. Stephen was in surgery, they’d lost their bond, magic was gone, and the world was falling apart. 

Literally.

It was almost too much.

 _Almost_.

“Mr. Stark,” Peter said, putting a hand on his shoulder and giving him a squeeze. “What are you going to do?”

Tony took a deep breath and pulled himself together. 

_Step up, Stark!_

“Help with the evacuation,” Tony said immediately. “Friday, coordinate with the rangers, see what they need, help them evacuate as they see fit. Get food, water, and transportation to the first responders.”

“Got it, boss.”

“But—” Peter said, his face twisted in confusion. “But how do we stop it? What are we going to do about it?”

The question was asked with a kind of youthful idealism that Tony never had for his father. Peter honestly thought that there was some way Tony had the power to control the Earth’s crust.

He closed his eyes, counted to ten. He didn’t savor having to break Peter’s belief that Tony was omnipotent. 

“Sometimes we can’t do anything, Pete. We had no idea how much of the world was held together by magic. Now we do, and we’re paying for our ignorance.”

Peter was silent for a moment and the doors to the elevator slip open. “Loki knew though. That’s why he was so mad at Doctor Dad.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t excuse what he did. Loki’s still a god that weighs five hundred pounds. And Stephen wasn’t in fighting shape.” Tony had already cooled down, but a part of him still wanted to put on the suit and go visit Loki’s room.

“No,” Peter said. “That was awful.” They walked further into the workshop and stopped at the sight of a familiar purple glow. “What is that?”

There were so many questions Tony had never asked Stephen that he should have. Right now the question was: what happens to pocket dimensions if magic ceases to exist?

On the floor, just laying there unprotected, was the Power Stone, exactly where Stephen had held it before he put it in his pocket dimension.

And if this pocket dimension was gone it stood to reason that every other one was gone too. So Tony would have to pay a visit to Loki and the Space Stone sooner rather than later, but more importantly…

Plans were going to have to be made to fight Thanos. Because now four of the six Infinity Stones were on Earth, and there was no way to completely hide them. And to add to that, Tony couldn’t imagine Thanos was above just a little old-fashioned revenge.

Tony created a gauntlet and grabbed the Power Stone, putting it back in the box it had been hidden in before Loki took it. 

“Mr. Stark?” Peter said softly.

“Yeah?”

“Where should I put— I mean, I don’t know where it would want to be?” Peter asked, gesturing to the Cloak. “We can’t just leave it out like this. Can we?”

Peter had the Cloak in his arms, its body laid out and lifeless. Tony had no idea what to do with it. Or whether Stephen would want to see it when he woke up.

“Here,” Tony said, then took the Cloak and draped it over the Mark I. It was a temporary placement for it, but it would do for now. Stephen could decide when he woke up.

There was so much for Tony to do until then. He needed to brief the UN, brief the President, he needed to check in with Steve and Kamar-Taj, coordinate the efforts with the Iron Legion.

Be there when Stephen woke up. Be the only dad Peter could lean on right now.

First things first. His clenched his fists and held himself together for one more moment.

“Peter, why don’t you check on May? Make sure she’s eaten. Go be with her for a bit. It’s gonna be some time until Stephen’s out of surgery.”

Peter shuffled his feet and put his hands in his pockets. “But what about you?”

“I got a lot to do here. Don’t worry about me, I’m gonna try to get it all done by the time Stephen’s done. I’ll call you when he’s out, okay?”

Peter seemed to hesitate, but he eventually nodded and left.

Tony sank into a chair and buried his face in his hands. He took a deep breath and then let out a bone-deep, primal scream.

The echo of it reverberated all around the workshop, the bots becoming scared and confused at Tony’s outburst.

He let out one awful sob before he screamed again. He couldn’t even begin to process everything that had just happened. All he knew was that he needed to be in fighting shape starting right this very minute. He had to. For Stephen, for the Avengers, for Peter, for the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, for the Security Council, for…

He could do this. Tony took deep breaths and collected himself for a moment. He could do this. He had no other choice. He cleared his throat and said, “Friday, send a jet to Kamar-Taj for Wong and anyone else who wants refuge in Avengers Compound. All are welcome. Then call the President and let her know her house is sinking and she should probably start relocating all the state secrets and Roosevelt’s china.

“Then…

Friday was quiet as she waited for Tony’s instruction.

“Call Pepper. See how she is. Ask her to come over.”

“Okay, boss,” Friday said.

Then Tony started trying to save the world.

*  
A few hours later and Tony had been reassured that the cradle was doing exactly what it was designed to do. The nerve damage in Stephen’s hands wouldn’t be repaired, but all the other injuries from today would. In a way it would be like today never happened.

Except it had. Now Tony needed to figure out a way to get it undone.

He sat on the patio of the med bay floor, where he and Stephen had finally sorted themselves out just a few days ago. He’d just needed a little air, just a breather from everything.

“Tony?” 

“Pep,” Tony said like a prayer and grabbed her, lifting her up and wrapping himself around her. “Oh, Pep.”

“It’s okay, Tony,” she said, petting his hair. “Thor told me what happened. I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah,” he said, half-listening and trying to hide himself from the world in the strands of her hair.

“Tony, listen to me,” she said, then looked him in the eye. “You’ve got this. There was never a problem you couldn’t solve. It sounds like it’s going to be tough, but you can do anything. I have complete faith in you.”

She was right, Tony knew she was right. But it was hard to feel any motivation right now. 

His heart was empty, and the love of his life felt like this was all his fault.

“I don’t know, Pep. This is a pretty deep hole.”

Pepper shook her head and smiled sadly. “I’ve seen deeper. Besides, I’ll help you. Thor too. You just need to rest, get your head on straight, and you’ll come up with a brilliant idea.”

“That does sound like me,” he said, then turned around to see the sunset.

Pepper was right. He needed to see Stephen recovered, needed to make sure he knew Tony still loved him, still wanted him, and needed him. He’d check in with the Iron Legion, help where he was needed.

And then he would get to work trying to figure out how to get magic back. For the sake of the world, and—if Loki was right—their universe.

And because this aching hole in his chest would eat him alive. He imagined Stephen felt the same.

He could do this. He _would_ do this.

He buried his face in his hands and centered himself on this new resolve. 

A breeze blew through his hair and he looked up into the sunset and set his eyes on the honeysuckle bushes on the edges of the Compound. The ones he’d given to Stephen’s butterflies.

They were empty. The butterflies were gone.

He bit his lip and forced his tears back. He’d get them back. Every last one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. Their constant encouragement keeps me going.
> 
> The temporary character warning is in reference of the Cloak. Happy ending is promised.
> 
> It wasn't until I finished this chapter and reread it that I realized exactly how much crying there is. Considering the circumstances, I think it makes sense. Plus, let men cry. And we all know Loki is the god of eyes always over brimmed with tears.
> 
> The next chapter is only about half written, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to update next Saturday. After that I'll take another one week break to catch up.
> 
> If anything changes I'll say so on my [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).
> 
> But again, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to finish it in a week. I know this is really angsty after so much fluff, so thank you for reading. I hope you're enjoying the story.


	21. Caught Cold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented or left kudos on the last chapter. I got so many comments about tears, and I'm not saying I'm glad I made people cry (cause what kind of monster, right) but I am glad this caught so many of you in the feels. To me, it means I'm doing something right. So thank you for letting me know you enjoyed it.
> 
> I was also surprised by how many people sympathized with Loki in the last chapter. I mean, I also sympathized with him but I expected more anger less oh poor Loki. Which, in hindsight, is probably dumb of me because as the writer even I feel bad for him.
> 
> Also extremely amusing: not one person said 'oh poor Thor' for getting stabbed by Loki. Pfft! Thor sees how it is, y'all.

“It went great, Tony,” Bruce said on screen. “Complete success. The cradle was able to repair all the damage.”

The nail in Tony’s mouth was chewed down to the bed. He exhaled and leaned so far back in his chair he had to catch himself before he fell. He’d had complete faith in Doctor Cho and Bruce—of course he did—but Stephen had been so badly hurt. He caught sight of the Cloak on the Mark I and straightened himself up.

“His hands?” Tony asked. 

The look on Bruce’s face told him everything. “The Cradle can’t repair nerve damage. At least not yet. But there were no breaks, no pins out of place. I’m sure he’ll be hurting when he wakes up, but we can give him painkillers, anti-inflammatories…”

“He said he didn’t want painkillers,” Tony interrupted. They’d never discussed it, but Tony had had his own issues with pain after Afghanistan, after palladium poisoning. He understood without it having to be said.

“Okay,” Bruce said and looked like he understood too. “He should be up in a few hours. You want me to call you?”

“Yeah,” Tony said. He wanted—God, how he wanted—to plant himself at Stephen’s bedside, do nothing but watch him breathe in and out until he woke up. But that was a luxury he didn’t have when the world was falling apart.

He’d done everything he could to help as many people as possible survive the impending geological disasters, but that was just putting out fires. Putting as many fingers in as many holes in as many dams as possible.

There was a tsunami coming, and Tony was the best person equipped to handle it.

They’d been completely unprepared for the Empirikul. They’d learned of their existence and then fell under attack twenty-four hours later. But this time Tony knew Thanos was coming, and he had extremely powerful weapons in his arsenal.

Now he just needed to figure out how to use those weapons. Because somehow he didn’t think he could just shake the Power Stone at Thanos and achieve anything.

“Okay,” Bruce said, snapping Tony back to the present. “I don’t foresee any complications, but I’ll let you know. Otherwise I’ll just tell you when he’s waking up.”

“Thanks, Bruce,” Tony said, then signed off.

Step number one, he thought. Go talk to the dead god walking. Tony tapped on the nano casing and let his armor form around him. Tony wasn’t entirely sure what would happen when he confronted Loki, but he knew he was walking away from it plus one Infinity Stone. Loki might be a god who weighed five hundred pounds, but Tony had a suit made of nano particles that he was betting was far more indestructible. 

“Friday, call Peter,” Tony said, getting in the elevator and heading up to Thor and Loki’s floor. 

“Mr. Stark? Is Doctor Strange okay?” Peter asked. Tony could hear meowing and May asking questions in the background.

“Yeah, that’s why I’m calling. Bruce says he’s doing great, just got out.” He kept his voice level, careful not to give anything away. “Listen, I’m still busy trying to keep Italy from meeting Atlantis. Can you go up and sit with him? Make sure he’s not alone?”

“Of course!” Peter said. And just like Tony expected, Peter seemed to feel good at being given something to do. “Do you think he’ll be hungry when he wakes up?”

All Tony wanted was for Peter to keep away from Thor and Loki’s floor while what went down, went down. He seriously doubted Bruce would allow Stephen to eat right after surgery, but he wasn’t going to tell Peter that. “He might. Maybe make a sandwich or two. Something you like too so you can eat it if he doesn’t want it.”

“Oh, that’s a good idea. I’m on my way, Mr. Stark!”

“Thanks, kid.”

Tony ended the call just as he approached Thor and Loki’s floor. He closed his faceplate and readied his repulsors.

“Friday?” he asked quietly. “What’s it looking like in there?”

“A complete mess,” Friday said.

Images of Thor and Loki fighting bare-knuckled and bleeding ran across Tony’s mind. He was definitely not looking forward to fighting with Thor, even if he didn’t have magic. Something told him Thor’s axe was still an axe even without the magical oomph behind it. He already regretted this, but he needed the Space Stone, and he needed answers. 

And that son of a bitch Loki hurt Stephen.

“Okay. Open it up,” Tony said, the whine of his repulsors breaking the heavy silence.

He took one step into the room and almost fell over.

“What the hell?”

It looked like a storage room for a Norse antique shop had blown up all over a library and onto Thor and Loki’s floor. There were large swatches of fabric tossed all over the room, decorative and dull weapons that Tony couldn’t date or guess the nation of origin.

Which…wow. Tony used to design weapons. He’d never met a weapon he couldn’t place.

And so many books. There were stacks of books everywhere, stacks of books up to the ceiling. Some stacked so high they could probably hurt someone if they fell over.

And in the middle of all that mess, a small blue stone shined.

“You in the habit of leaving building blocks of the universe just laying around the place?” Tony asked the room. It was difficult to tell if there was anyone actually there.

“Do you see this?” Thor asked from the floor by the sofa where he’d been hidden. His eyes were filled with wonder and sadness. In his hands he held some mismatched fabric sewn together with long ears and button eyes. It was wearing a little dress and looked like it had been well-loved by a child a long time ago. “I cried for a week when I lost her. Thought I lost her. She was my best friend before my brother came along.”

“For the last time,” Loki said from some hidden corner of junk. Tony spun around and lifted his hands, repulsors ready to fire. “I’m sorry I lost Brunhilde. She was the first thing I ever managed to put in my pocket dimension, and it took me a year to get her out again. By then it was far too late to admit fault.”

“Admit it, brother. You hated that I loved a toy more than you,” Thor said into the rabbit’s ears.

“There’s never been anything you’ve loved more than me, Thor,” Loki said sadly. Like he was admitting defeat.

Thor smiled and put the rabbit on the floor. “Mead came in a close second,” Thor said, with a smile, though his eyes were sad. 

“Fighting a close third,” Loki said. Tony still couldn’t see him through all the junk.

Making an uncertain hum, Thor shrugged and said, “A distant third. But not now.”

Tony heard a thud that could have been a head hitting a wall. “No,” Loki said. “Not now.”

They were talking like they were dying. Reminiscing and drowning in old memories while they waited for the end. It felt wrong on so many levels to see two powerful beings so defeated. Even if Tony did want to hurt Loki.

“You two going to sit around all day moping?” Tony asked, lifting a repulsor to where he thought Loki was sitting. “Or are we going to do this and get to work?”

A pile of books in the corner of the room shuffled but stayed hidden while Thor stood up to greet him. Well, at least they finally seemed to realize Tony was there.

Thor finally gave Tony a good look, took in the suit and the fighting stance and two plus two made four. “Have you come here for revenge, Tony?” He straightened his shoulders but didn’t pick up his axe. “I realize you have every right to it, but he is still my brother.”

“Yeah, I _really_ don’t want to fight you, Thor. But there’s no way we can just sweep this under the rug.” Tony bit his lip. His finger hurt where the nail bed scrapped against his gauntlet. 

He thought about Stephen in the med bay downstairs, thought about how terrified he’d been when he first saw him looking so hurt at Kamar-Taj. “He could barely sit up on his own,” Tony said, almost to himself. The memory of Stephen blaming himself, of claiming Loki had known better and that he’d been wrong. “What kind of person kicks a man while he’s down?” Tony hissed.

Eyes on the floor, Thor seemed to consider what Tony said. “Indeed,” he said after a moment. “Very well. He’s in that corner,” he said, then pointed to where the books had fallen. “Do what you will.”

The calm way Thor had said that and the somber tone of the room cooled his anger, but Tony thought of Stephen and grabbed it back with both hands. Wrapped it around himself like a righteous armor and marched over to the corner where Loki hid.

Loki looked lost and alone and defeated. He looked small. If Tony compared him to the Loki that Steve fought in Germany, they didn’t even seem to be the same person. He was half-covered in books and fabric and old oil paintings and rugs. 

They looked like the only things that were holding him up.

“Come to avenge your love, Stark? Do me a kindness,” Loki said, then tapped his head. “Just don’t let up. Keep going. It might take awhile, but you can do it.”

Tony took a deep, long inhale, then lowered his gauntlet. “Damn it, Thor,” he whined, then turned back just in time to see Thor with a pleased look about him. 

“What kind of man kicks another while he’s down?” Thor asked with a smile that was part sadness, part smug.

“Uh. Your brother?”

“Loki will make amends, I assure you,” Thor said.

“No, I won’t,” Loki said, his chin on his chest. “I’m not going to have the power to make amends to anyone. Every part of myself has been stripped away, and I am nothing. Thanos is coming, and magic is gone. The universe will slowly break down, and we’ll all be dead soon.”

There was silence for a beat as Tony and Thor took in Loki’s defeated tone and the absolute misery about him. 

Then Tony broke it. “Yeah, no. You’re going to make amends by helping me figure out how we get magic back and defeat Thanos. I hope you got all your anger out when you punched Stephen because it’s time to go to work now.”

Thor seemed to perk up at that, but Loki just laughed darkly from his little hole.

“Oh, Stark. Thank you for bringing some much-needed levity in such a dark time,” Loki said.

Tony kicked him. “Seriously, get up. And maybe, I don’t know, clean up a bit? What is all this junk and where did it come from?”

“My brother learned how to bring his pocket dimension with him a long time ago,” Thor said proudly. “No easy feat.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, looking around the room with new eyes. That explained why he couldn’t place the weapons, and why some of the books looked older than the ones in Stephen’s library. “Kinda glad Stephen didn’t bring Thanos to Earth right now.”

“Yes,” Thor said, a grim look on his face. “What is your plan for bringing magic back? Whatever it is, I am with you.”

“Ha!” Loki shouted. “Listen to you, brother. There is no bringing it back. There is nothing that can undo the reality-warping powers of an Infinity Stone but the very same Infinity Stone. How are you going to track down the Empirikul?”

“I think you’re forgetting we have four out of six Infinity Stones in our possession, right now,” Tony said. “Why don’t we use them?”

Loki squinted at him. “Did you conveniently forget me telling you not a day ago that to use them would take a device built by a master? And that even then it is folly?”

“Folly for you or for me?” Tony sighed at himself. “Look, you guys are gods, right? Even without magic, you’re still ridiculous strong, still tough, and hard to kill?”

“Yes,” Thor said. “What are you thinking, Tony?”

“I’m thinking I figure out a way to harness the stones’ power and then one of you use it.” He said it like it would be so easy, when he knew it would be anything but. “We go get the Reality Stone and get magic to exist again.”

Thor and Loki shared a look, the silent conversation between themselves heavy. Thor finally gave Loki _a look_ and Loki rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Look, we already know how to use the Space Stone,” Tony said, gesturing to the tiny glowing stone that could literally open a portal in space that was just sitting on the floor. “I can use Selvig’s original design and modify it.”

“Stark,” Loki said sadly. “This is madness. You’re not talking about using the Space Stone to open a portal to another point in our universe. You’re talking about opening a portal to another universe all together.”

Tony finally retracted the suit and put his hands in his pockets. “What? Like it’s hard?”

“Tony…” Thor said softly.

“Look, we have the Space Stone, right? But we also have Time, Mind, and Power. There’s gotta be a way we can use those together…right?” He was grasping at straws and he knew it. But he also knew that the answer to their problem wasn’t in creating a stronger weapon. Tony had to get magic back before the world fell apart.

Before Stephen fell apart.

“We have four Infinity Stones,” Tony said. “Four huge weapons in our arsenal. That’s gotta count for something.”

Loki stared at Tony for a moment, then seemed to think about it. Finally, he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Time should not be meddled with.”

Tony thought about how Stephen had been hesitant to use the Time Stone and reluctantly agreed.

Loki let his head fall back against the wall again. “The Mind Stone is in the Vision?”

Tony nodded.

“We probably wouldn’t need that regardless.” He studied his hands for a long moment, the silence growing long and tense. “I truly do not think you’ll be able to create a device that will allow you to use the Space Stone the way you want, Stark.”

It really surprised Tony to learn he actually respected Loki’s opinion, but apparently he did. Especially in this. Loki knew the Space Stone in a way no one else could. He kept it in his pocket dimension thing for who knows how long. He was probably the person who had the most knowledge of an Infinity Stone except for—

“Stephen,” Tony whispered. He turned away from Loki as his thoughts started to go down a winding road. “But that’s the Time Stone. Still an Infinity Stone, but the wrong one.”

“Stark?” Loki asked.

“Let him think,” Thor said.

Stephen would know how to use the Time Stone, but they didn’t need that particular stone. But Stephen also routinely used a portal to get around, which functioned like the Space Stone.

Where Loki had to use the power of the Space Stone to get from place to place, Stephen had that ring of his and—as far as Tony knew—it had never failed him. Stephen was able to move around like Loki but without giving out enough gamma radiation to flash a red, flashing light over Earth to the entire universe.

Stephen used that ring to create portals to other dimensions. If they could figure out how he did that, maybe Tony could alter Selvig’s original device to track down the Empirikul.

Plus, Stephen was a scientist himself and brilliant. He couldn’t have been the top neurosurgeon in the world without a mind that knew how to explore the boundaries of science.

“Yup,” Tony said, clapping his hands together. “Okay, seriously, Snowflake. I’m going to go check on Stephen for a bit, but when I’m done we’re going to get started on this. So pick yourself up or get Thor to do it, and get with the program.”

“What?” Loki asked, and it amused Tony that Loki was the confused one for once.

“What is your plan, Tony?” Thor asked.

Tony spread his arms wide and said, “Portals.”

Loki frowned, but after a moment he seemed to realize what Tony meant. He stood up and shook himself off, going over to a stack of books while muttering to himself.

“Well, it looks like he’s back in the game,” Tony said. “What about you big guy? Are you going to go help the others or are you staying here?”

Thor looked over to Loki and shook his head. “My place is with my brother. I fear for his safety. You were not with him when it happened, Tony. His eyes rolled back and I feared he was dead. He would not wake up when I shook him.”

Loki was nose deep in a book and obviously not listening to a word they were saying. Tony took out the nano particle container, formed a gauntlet, and hid the Space Stone away like he’d planned. “I know Loki was shaken by magic dying, but how are you holding up? I feel like everyone forgets you use magic too.”

Thor smiled sadly and gripped Tony by the shoulder so hard he almost fell over. “I need to be strong for Loki.”

Tony just looked at him, because that was an absolutely terrible answer.

Finally, Thor sighed. “I can no longer feel the lightning in my veins. Without magic I am untethered from Valhalla, from my family and friends who went before me. I am lost.”

Tony put his hand over Thor’s and waited.

“For me, it feels as though I have lost a limb,” Thor said, looking over at Loki. “For my brother it as though he’s lost his entire self.”

Tony nodded and patted his hand. He had no idea what Thor and Loki were going through. Yeah, he’d had terrible experiences in life, but he hadn’t had a constant in his life for fifteen hundred years only to have it ripped away so suddenly.

“Loki really, _really_ lucked out getting you as a brother,” he said.

Thor looked over at Loki and it was like he was seeing the last fifteen hundred years unfold right in front of him. Loss and hurt and joy and love flashed over his face and Tony felt a deep pain as he thought about his own loss of ‘forever.’

“You’re only seeing this page of the story,” Thor said. “If you could read the entire book, you’d think differently.”

*

Tony deposited the Space Stone next to Time and Power. As soon as Stephen was feeling better in mind and body Tony would bring him down here and see what they could do. The answer to undoing what one stone did had to be another stone. And they needed to figure this out sooner rather than later if they wanted the world to stay in one piece.

This was good, he thought. He just needed to keep moving forward, needed to keep his eyes on the prize. He caught sight of the Cloak out of the corner of his eye and thought how absolutely awful it was that he was just displaying his friend’s body on his old armor.

Wait. 

No.

_You’re being humanoid-ist, Stark._

Running his fingers lightly over its folds, Tony said, “I’m gonna fix this, and we’ll get you back. I promise.” He looked around for a better place to leave it, but somehow he didn’t think the Cloak would enjoy being tucked away with the Infinity Stones or Thanos’ gauntlet.

He’d ask Stephen. In fact, now that the immediate threat of a wayward Infinity Stone had been dealt with, seeing Stephen was absolutely necessary. 

The second he stepped foot in the elevator to do just that, Friday said, “Incoming call from Captain Rogers.”

“Oh, fuck me,” Tony muttered to himself. This was the last thing he needed, but the world was on fire. “Put him on.”

“Tony?” Steve’s voice rang out into the elevator.

“I’m here, Cap. How you doing over there?”

There was a shuffling noise in the background and the sound of sirens. Tony hadn’t seen the damage in England yet. He’d been too busy coordinating relief efforts in other parts of the world.

Meanwhile his world was waiting for him in the med bay.

“We’re still pulling people out of cars, but there’s just so many. It was rush hour, these people were on their way to work when this happened…”

The elevator stopped at the med bay floor, but Steve’s voice followed him from the elevator to the living room. 

“What happened, Tony?”

Tony was silent for a moment, and considered how to answer that. What happened was simple: they lost. The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj had done the best they could and came up short. That was the simple answer. 

But that wasn’t fair, and that wasn’t what Steve was asking.

“It turns out magic was responsible for a lot more than what we knew. This whole time the world was being held together by it, and we had no idea. All that time we spent worrying about arms dealers and fighting each other there was this whole other reality we should have been protecting.”

There was silence for a moment, the sound of people yelling commands in the background the only sound between them.

“We didn’t know, Tony,” Steve said, and Tony would have sworn it sounded like he was trying to be comforting. “We didn’t even know it existed, let alone that it needed protecting.”

“It didn’t,” Tony said, sitting down on the sofa, and realizing what he’d said was wrong. “The sorcerers…they…they’ve been doing this for millennia. The reason we didn’t know was because we didn’t need to know. They had it handled. And then these…assholes show up and—“

“How’s Strange?”

Tony took a deep breath then exhaled violently at the question. Steve didn’t like Stephen, didn’t trust him. Why would he ask that question? And how the hell was Tony supposed to answer it? 

_”Yeah, Stephen’s fine physically but last time I checked he was completely falling apart with guilt and grief.”_

“Tony? Is Stephen…”

He trailed off, but sounded like he cared about the answer. 

Tony answered on autopilot. 

“Bruce put him in the cradle. He was hurt pretty bad, but he’ll be okay.”

His legs were shaking so bad he was glad he was sitting down. Tony had no idea why he was telling Steve this after the past few days. Maybe it was because he’d been going nonstop since it happened. Maybe it was because he knew he had to be strong for the entire world and for Stephen.

Maybe it was because Steve was asking, and Tony had always been willing to offer his back to a friend’s knife.

“If he’s okay, are you coming?” Steve asked, breaking Tony’s train of thought.

“No,” Tony said quickly. “I just—no. It’s not just England, Cap. The entire world is ready to blow apart. Old Faithful is ready to erupt. Mount Vesuvius too. I got word an hour ago that the Taj Mahal is crumbling. I’m actually able to do a lot more from home base than as just one man in a tin can.”

Steve was silent on the line for a moment. Tony could hear Natasha shouting orders in the background and the beeping of a large truck backing up.

“That’s not the only reason, Tony,” Steve said. “Everyone’s really scared. They don’t know what’s going on. There haven’t been any official announcements from anyone. I think it would mean a lot to people if you just showed up for a few hours. Give people hope.”

The bed of his nail ached as Tony bit into it. His ears burned at the nerve, the absolute gumption of Steve Rogers to say something like that after everything that had happened.

He closed his eyes and said, “Better explain to them I’m no one’s hero, Cap. Hey, how could anyone trust me, right?” It was an unfair shot when Steve had been kind for the entire call, but Tony couldn’t help himself.

Steve was silent for a moment. 

“You’re Earth’s greatest hero,” Steve said.

Tony snorted. “How do you figure that?”

“I’ve known that for a long time. I don’t think we’ve ever seen eye-to-eye long enough for me to say it. But it’s true, Tony.”

Tony didn’t know what to say to that. He wanted to say Steve’s words meant nothing to him because Steve meant nothing to him, but that was a bald faced lie. There was something about childhood heroes that never died. And Steve’s good opinion was something Tony had always felt the lack of.

A part of him was disgusted with himself, feeling anything at all at Steve’s kindness because seriously, what should he care? Steve had been the judge at Tony’s make believe trial for so long now. And now he threw a compliment Tony’s way only for Tony to eat it up? Pathetic. 

But maybe now, at the end of the world he could let his better angels do the talking. Let the bigger part of himself compartmentalize all that anguish to deal with later when he could tell Stephen about it. Maybe he could let himself trust Steve just a little bit.

His stupid, stupid heart.

“Tony?”

Tony cleared his throat again. “Thanks, Cap. Yeah, I—thanks.”

“Tony, I’m sorry.”

Damn it, Tony couldn’t do this right now. He needed to go see Stephen, he needed to coordinate relief efforts, he needed to figure out how to use science on the Space Stone.

He didn’t have time to have feelings because Steve decided to be a decent human being.

“You’re not about to die over there, are you, Cap?”

Steve laughed and the moment was broken. Thank God. “No. Just something I should have said a long time ago. Look, I know you’re busy, and Stephen needs you, but maybe a few hours? It would go a long way.”

In the background, Wanda was talking to someone—maybe Scott—about coordinating the moving of a large piece of stone. 

“How’s Wanda taking all of this? How is she helping? Organizing aid workers?” Tony asked. She was from war-torn Eastern Europe, she probably had some experience in organizing relief.

“No,” Steve said, sounding confused. “She’s moving huge chunks of road out of the way so we can get to people. What else would she be doing?”

His heart started beating overtime and Tony grabbed hold of the pendant that was still around his neck, even if the magic was gone.

Even though Stephen’s protections were gone. 

Because Stephen and every other sorcerer on Earth drew power from the universe to use magic.

Except Wanda Maximoff, who used the Mind Stone. 

Wanda Maximoff, who still wasn’t very fond of Tony.

Wanda Maximoff, who had access to his home. 

“Tony? You there?”

“Yeah,” he said, and he could hear how breathless he sounded. Okay, he told himself. It would be fine. There were so many other issues to worry about right now, and Wanda was on the other side of the Atlantic. He was fine. Plus, she seemed to have been a little better adjusted the last time he saw her.

“Do you guys need anything?” he asked, pulling himself together. “Food, water, a hotel room? How long has it been since you rested?”

“Yeah, some rest would be nice. Especially for some of us.”

“The non-powered superheroes who actually bleed? Okay, so getting hotel rooms for everyone but you and Wanda.”

Steve laughed darkly, then said, “I really wish that was true.”

Tony really needed to go see Stephen. “Was there an original reason for the call, Cap?”

Steve was silent for a moment then said, “Yeah, I needed to give a sit-rep to the leader of the Avengers.”

It was like Steve had just punched him in the gut.

“Let me know if you can make it,” Steve said. “We’ll understand either way. And give our best to Stephen…if you think he’d appreciate it.”

“Yeah,” Tony said absently. His mind still trying to wrap itself around ‘leader of the Avengers.’

“Rogers out.”

Tony sat there for a long moment, catching his breath, calming himself enough to go see Stephen.

Yeah, there was no calming himself. He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants and stumbled his way to the med bay. Off balance and torn wide open, Tony walked into the med bay only to find it empty.

“He’s in a room towards the back,” Bruce said from a desk in the corner. “I’m reviewing the surgery now. Everything went just fine. You can go to him. I think Peter’s back there too.”

“Is Peter okay?”

“Yeah,” Bruce said, rubbing the back of his head. “He tried to bring his kitten in here. I feel like we break enough rules, we don’t need to break that one.”

“Hey, listen, Bruce,” Tony said, walking over to him and taking his hand. “Thank you. So much. I don’t know what—“

“Hey, of course. Don’t even think about it.”

“I was so worried, I wasn’t thinking straight,” Tony said.

Bruce looked at him, really looked at him and God only knew what he saw. “When’s the last time you slept? Or ate something?”

Tony exhaled. Kamar-Taj. He’d had about six hours of sleep at Kamar-Taj, wrapped around Stephen and the Cloak. That really hadn’t been all that long ago, but so much had happened since then.

“I think you should get some rest, Tony. With everything that’s going on, we’re all going to be going nonstop and burn out if we don’t take the time to rest.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, already imagining falling into Stephen’s bed. Now that the immediate issues had been resolved—Stephen: safe in bed, Time Stone: as safe as possible in the workshop, Peter: kitten-less but relatively okay—Tony was maybe feeling all the fighting he’d done in the last few days. 

“Do you think the bed is big enough?” Tony asked.

“Yeah, the Cradle fixed everything. You’re not gonna hurt him.” He paused, then took his glasses off to clean. With his eyes elsewhere, he said, “No strenuous activity for at least twenty-four hours though.”

Tony squinted then barked out a laugh. Yeah, he seriously doubted that would be an issue. Not when the Cloak and magic was dead, and it was very likely Stephen wouldn’t remember the jet ride over. He tapped Bruce on the shoulder and went to see his family.

*

“Friday, take a picture,” Tony whispered. Peter had fallen asleep on the edge of the bed, curled up around Stephen. It was the sweetest thing Tony had ever seen.

“Got it, boss,” Friday replied.

“Pete,” he said, shaking Peter’s shoulder. “Hey.”

Shuffling and clinging harder to Stephen, Peter muttered, “Five more minutes.” Then he seemed to realize where he was and shot straight up in bed. “Mr. Stark! I swear I just fell asleep for—“

“Shh,” Tony said, ushering Peter out of bed. “It’s fine. Honestly, it’s been a really long day for everyone. Go get some shut eye. Make sure May and Pancake are okay.”

“Flapjack,” Peter said automatically.

“That’s what I said,” Tony said, sitting on the edge of the bed where Peter had just laid. “When he’s awake and more himself I’ll call you down. Promise.”

There was no way Tony would let Peter be around Stephen when he first woke up. Tony had survived so many traumatic events, and he knew it was very possible that Stephen would have to be told all over again what happened in the last day.

Peter was a kid. Peter was _their_ kid, and no kid needed to see their dad fall apart like that.

“Okay,” Peter said, then hugged Tony tightly before leaving.

Rubbing a hand over his face and through his hair, Tony leaned back a bit on the bed. There was so much to do, and the other Avengers weren’t getting to rest.

But Tony was so tired. Sitting there with the weight of the world on his shoulders, he kicked off his shoes, and laid back next to Stephen.

“Friday, do we have any ice cream in?” Tony whispered. “Order all the Avengers flavors. Stephen loves that stuff.”

“Not yours, boss.”

Tony smiled and turned over, giving into the urge to wrap himself around Stephen and protect him from the world. “Well, there’s no accounting for taste.”

Stephen must have moved in his sleep to accommodate Peter, so Tony was able to spoon up behind him. 

It felt different.

He didn’t want to admit it to himself, wanted to deny it and would deny it to Stephen, but Tony felt the ache of emptiness in his heart where Stephen used to be. Even his smell was different. Instead of old books and tea, all Tony could smell was hospital clean. Curling up next to him now without being able to feel Stephen inside of him was the absolute worst kind of agony.

How could he miss Stephen if he was right there?  
“Hmm,” Stephen muttered in his sleep. His breathing changed in a way that told Tony he was waking up. 

Tony pushed aside all his own pain and insecurities and loosened his hold a bit. He didn’t want Stephen being alarmed when he woke up.

Slowly, Stephen shifted and nestled in deeper into his pillow, all the normal things he’d do if he was waking up from a deep sleep. 

But this wasn’t a normal sleep. And Tony could tell the second Stephen was awake from the way he suddenly tensed in his arms.

The gasp he took was stuttered and unnatural and hurt Tony to hear. 

“Tony?” Stephen asked.

“I’m right here, baby,” Tony said softly, squeezing Stephen around his middle just a bit. Just to ground him, just so he could know Tony was real. “You’re at the Compound. You got hurt, but Bruce and another doctor named Helen Cho put you in a device called the Cradle. You’re okay now, I promise.”

Stephen seemed to take that in, his breathing still coming in fast pants. Finally, he asked the question Tony had been dreading.

“Cloak?”

Tony squeezed him again, and felt Stephen’s soft shudder against his body as he seemed to remember at least part of what happened yesterday.

“I’m sorry, Stephen,” Tony said, holding onto him for dear life.

The silence of the room was disturbed only by Stephen’s fast breaths, and Tony held him as he began to fall apart in his arms. “It’s all my fault,” Stephen cried. “I did this. I wouldn’t let you help, I wouldn’t let the others help. I did this. My best friend is dead, and it’s my fault.”

“No,” Tony said, then tried to turn Stephen, but he wouldn’t budge. Fine, he’d say this to Stephen’s hair. “You did what you thought was best. That’s all any of us can ever do.”

“What I did just destroyed magic,” Stephen sobbed. 

“The Empirikul destroyed magic,” Tony said. “You did your best to try and stop it. And you were trying to protect your order. I understood that then, and I understand it now.”

Stephen was quiet for a moment, and it was only because Tony was holding onto him that he knew he was crying. Tony hooked an ankle over Stephen’s and did his best to fold himself over his entire body while he wept. Tony kissed the back of his neck and held on for dear life.

“How many dead?” Stephen asked through his tears after a moment.

“Friday?” Tony asked, because he hadn’t thought to check since he’d last asked.

“The UN is still totaling figures,” Friday said.

“By the Vishanti,” Stephen whispered. “Everyone knows us now.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Though…” Stephen said, his breathing evening out somewhat and his tone becoming more flat. “I suppose it doesn’t matter as much now that magic is gone.”

“Of course it matters,” Tony said, not knowing exactly where this was going, but not liking it. “We’ll have to sit down when this is all over and magic is back, but—“

“What?” Stephen asked, tilting his head to look back at Tony, but still not moving to embrace him. “What do you mean ‘when magic is back?’” His voice sounded confused and thick with disbelief. “Do you have a plan? Did Loki—“ 

Stephen cut himself off and laid his head back on his pillow, probably remembering the last conversation he had with Loki. He rubbed his jaw and was quiet for a few moments.

“Don’t worry about that right now, but yeah. I’ll need your help, but I’ve got an idea,” Tony said. “But we need to get you rested and better first.”

With a shaking hand, Stephen traced his fingers over Tony’s wrapped around his waist. 

“Why are you even here?” he asked. He sounded so small and lost.

The question hurt. The hole behind his heart seemed to tear itself open just a little bit more. One single tear escaped from Tony’s eye as he clenched them, then held Stephen even closer, not willing to let him go.

“Because I love you,” Tony said softly, but with as much of himself as he could put into the words. “Because when I said I was on your team, I didn’t mean only when we’re winning. I meant always, even when things get ugly, even when it looks like everything is lost. In fact, that might be when I wave my Team Strange flag the hardest.”

“But…” Stephen said. “You’re free. The bond’s—“ he choked on the word, and Tony rubbed his nose into Stephen’s neck and _held_.

“The bond’s gone,” Stephen sobbed. “There’s nothing holding you to me anymore.”

“There’s me,” Tony said, and a few more tears escaped because he damn if Stephen wasn’t breaking his heart right now. 

“What?”

Tony squeezed so tight he might have heard Stephen squeak. “I’m holding on to you. Right now. Because I want to. I meant what I said, Stephen. All I’ve ever wanted was someone exactly like you. And not because you’re some super powerful sorcerer. You’re brilliant, and beautiful, and kind, and I _love you_.”

Another shudder ran through Stephen’s body, but Tony didn’t let go. Not an inch. 

“I can’t protect you anymore,” Stephen whispered. “Not from anyone. If anything, I’m a liability now. I can’t even protect myself.”

“Honey, you protecting me was an added bonus. All I want in this life is you,” Tony said, kissing the side of Stephen’s face he could reach. “You and Peter and this life. If I made you feel otherwise, I’m sorry.”

“I just—“ Stephen said, then shook his head, like he really couldn’t believe what Tony was saying. “There’s nothing tying us together now. We aren’t bonded, we aren’t married—“

“Do you want to get married?” Tony asked. Because he’d considered himself married to Stephen since Titan. “I’ll marry you, Stephen.”

“No,” Stephen responded quickly, like the response had always been on the tip of his tongue.

An icy cold hand wrapped around Tony’s heart, and he finally loosened his grip around Stephen.

“Wait,” Stephen said quickly, then finally turned around. His face was covered in tears and bruises, but looked so much better than the last time Tony saw him. Tony ran a hand through his hair and smiled through his heartache. Stephen was just too beautiful, he had to smile.

“It’s okay,” Tony said, and if they’d been bonded Stephen would know he was lying through his teeth. “Marriage isn’t for everyone. And if we get magic back—“

“Not like this,” Stephen said quickly.

Tony frowned, not understanding.

Closing his eyes, Stephen took a deep breath and slowly placed his lips on Tony’s, just like Tony had that first time. Soft and chaste and barely a kiss, but with all the love that Tony had always felt from him. 

“I want to marry you,” Stephen said, the words reverberating against Tony’s lips as he spoke. “But not like this. Not because we have to. I’ll marry you, Tony. When we both want to. But not like this.”

Tony exhaled and buried his face on Stephen’s shoulder. He wrapped both arms around Stephen and held on tight. 

“I love you,” Stephen muttered into Tony’s shirt. “Thank you for coming for me.”

“I’ll always come for you,” Tony said, then pulled back and kissed him. Stephen tasted like salt and stale breath, and Tony hadn’t realized how terrified he’d been that he would have never been able to do this again. 

After a moment, they pulled back and rested their foreheads together. Breathed in each other’s air and let their eyes meet. Tony traced Stephen’s healed jawline, felt the stubble there and mentally reminded himself to see if Stephen would need help now that the Cloak was gone.

“Where’s the Cloak?” Stephen asked, breaking the silence.

“In my workshop, on the shoulders of my armor. I couldn’t think of a better place to put it,” Tony said.

Stephen sniffled but shook his head. “The Cloak was stuffed inside a glass case for centuries. Maybe it could be on our floor and face a window?”

Tony smiled despite the dark topic. _Our floor_.

“Okay,” Tony said, kissing Stephen again. “We’ll put it on our floor until magic is back, then it’ll be back with you where it belongs.”

Stephen nodded. “Wong? My novices?”

“Wong and several other sorcerers are currently on their way to the Compound,” Friday said. “Though Wong has been asked to be taken back to the New York Sanctum after he’s visited with you, Doctor Strange.”

“Thank you, Friday,” Stephen said. “Is there anything else dire going on that I should know now?” He was silent for a moment, then looked at Tony with fear in his eyes. “Thanos?”

Tony thought about Thanos and his plan to use Stephen’s knowledge of both science and magic to get the Reality Stone back. He thought about the other Avengers in England pulling people out of rubble, thought of a super volcano in danger of erupting. 

“Yeah,” Tony said. “Thanos. And a lot of other terrible things. But we’re going to beat him, Stephen. We’re going to rest and when we wake up, we’re going to go to work.”

“Tony,” Stephen said, looking more small and scared than Tony had ever seen him. “In fourteen million futures, there was only one scenario where we won. Without being able to use the Time Stone, how could we possibly win?”

He clenched his fists in Stephen’s hospital gown. He couldn’t explain the blind faith he had in him and Stephen where he’d never had such a thing before. But that’s what it was: absolute total certainty in the two of them. “Because nothing can stand against the two of us. You and me. Team Strange.”

Stephen looked at him with disbelief and wonder, then laughed like he thought Tony was a fool but would follow him anyway. “Team Stark.”

“That’s right, baby,” Tony said, kissing Stephen and falling over him in a happier embrace. “There’s no beating us if we’re together. Are you with me?”

Stephen smiled, though it didn’t meet his eyes. His shaky hands ran up Tony’s cheeks and he said, “I never should have left.” 

Tony kissed his fingers, and closed his eyes.

“I haven’t felt this alone in a long time,” Stephen whispered.

Tony wanted to say that Stephen wasn’t alone, that Tony was right here, that he’d been here, and he wasn’t going anywhere. But Tony knew exactly what Stephen meant, even if he’d been prepared to deny it.

But there was no bond to make it difficult for them to keep their pain from each other now. And Tony didn’t want to lose what they had.

“Me too,” Tony said, running his hand over Stephen’s arm. “I miss you, but you’re right here.”

Through tears and anguish, Stephen smiled gently at being understood, and Tony knew he’d made the right choice.

“We’ll get it back,” Stephen said with a firm tone, and he sounded like he meant it.

“Yeah,” Tony said, thinking of their bond, of the Cloak, of everything that had been taken from them. “We’ll get it all back. But first, we rest and heal.”

“Hmm.”

“I ordered ice cream for later. A dozen cartons of Stark Raving Hazelnuts.”

“I thought you wanted me to heal,” Stephen said.

Tony bit his nose and wrapped himself around Stephen again. There, in the cool darkness of the med bay, Tony slowly ran his hands through Stephen’s hair until he fell asleep.

He forced himself to stop planning, stop thinking about what needed to be done, and let himself fall deeper into Stephen’s arms. There, his nose deep in Stephen’s hair, Tony found it.

Tea and old books.

Not moving a muscle, Tony inhaled deeply, and was finally able to rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title is referencing a boxing term. 
> 
> I wanted to take another week break after a little bit of hope and comfort after the last few chapters. As much as I loved writing the heavy angst, this chapter felt lighter on my heart. 
> 
> So far posting four weeks in a row and taking one week off is working really well for me. So next Saturday will be my off Saturday and then I'll be back posting on the 26th.
> 
> Thank you all again for leaving so many wonderful comments on my fic. I appreciate every single one, so thank you.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. Their constant encouragement keeps me going.
> 
>  
> 
> I'll be on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com).


	22. Liability

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who commented or left kudos on the last chapter. It makes me so happy when someone lets me know they binged my fic or let me know why they liked a chapter. Every comment makes me smile so thank you.
> 
> Also, I got pretty sick over the past week, and I know it's from overextending myself. With the holiday season coming up, I'm sorry to say but I'm going to have to go to updating every other week. I tried really hard to push it for as long as I could, but I know I only got as sick as I was because I hadn't been sleeping. I also put off every other week updates because it always made me so glad when people said they looked forward to Saturdays for updates, and I'm sorry if I'm disappointing anyone. I think if I go to every other week it'll be better for me (and the fic too) in the long run.
> 
> Last chapter we got sleepy cuddles and h/c. This week we have a sweet, healing _shower scene_.

Stephen lingered.

Through the haze of sleep, he became distantly aware of his surroundings. He felt heat on his hands and a warmth all along his back, but the rest of him was freezing. His muscles were sore, like he’d gone twelve rounds against a heavyweight. He could feel the absence of magic—the absence of Tony—just skirt his consciousness, and the only reason he didn’t try harder to stay asleep was his dream.

Red.

All he’d dreamt of was red. The red of the Reality Stone flashing before he fell, the blood of sorcerers torn apart right in front of him, the sight of the Cloak out of the corner of his eye as they fell together.

Reality slammed into him again as he snapped into awareness all at once, the agony of his dream and the pain of waking too much to ignore.

“Hey,” Tony said, curled up behind him. “It’s okay, Doc. You’re at the Compound. You’re fine.” He felt dry lips kiss the back of his neck, and Stephen sank back into the embrace.

Every part of his body hurt but wasn’t comparable to the ache of loss. He was disconnected from the universe for the first time in ages. Magic had given him a purpose where he’d had none. It had opened his eyes to a world beyond himself. It had given him friendship and meaning in a life that had been devoid of it. 

And it was gone. The weight of the loss was so heavy, Stephen had trouble catching his breath. It felt like there was a terrible pressure on his chest. 

“Stephen?” Tony said, backing away from him and letting the heating pads drop from his hands. Stephen backed up in an effort to chase the warmth. “Stephen, hey, it’s okay. Everything is gonna be okay. Take a deep breath for me.”

Stephen fell onto his back and tried to catch his breath. He was cold again, and whatever thick, soft blanket Tony had draped over them felt awful.

Stephen deserved to be cold.

“Stephen, please. You need to calm down,” Tony said from the side of the bed. “Deep breath.”

His body obeyed, but all he could feel was the heavy loss in his heart. His bond with Tony was gone, the Cloak was gone, and Stephen was alone.

“That’s right,” Tony said softly from his side. “Deep breaths. It’s going to be okay. I know it feels really bad now, but I promise you I have a plan. We just need to take care of you because you’re a big part of it. I need you, Stephen.” 

Exhausted, Stephen tilted his head to the side and looked at Tony. He was still wearing the same clothes he’d worn to the Hague, the clothes he’d worn to the Crimson Dimension, to Kamar-Taj. 

It had all happened so fast, Stephen couldn’t wrap his mind around it.

“There you go,” Tony said, running a hand over his face in relief. “Is it okay to touch?”

If it was possible, Stephen would have shrunk himself and crawled into Tony’s pocket and just lived there forever. He was so tired and so cold, and all he wanted was to feel Tony and the Cloak again.

He lifted himself up with his elbows and fell into Tony, wrapping himself around him and taking all the strength he could.

Stephen’s nose wrinkled as he breathed Tony in. Stephen knew he was no peach either, but he held on for dear life anyway. Tony said he had a plan. Tony said he could fix all of this. He grabbed that like the life preserver it was.

“You really stink, Doc,” Tony muttered into his shoulder. “Don’t they still give sponge baths in hospitals?”

“That would have been a bit awkward with you sleeping right next to me,” Stephen said. He felt Tony’s smile and held on tighter. 

“Come on,” Tony said, pulling back and holding Stephen by the elbow. “Let’s take a shower. We’re both filthy, and we have a lot to do today.”

Hesitantly, Stephen put his leg down on the floor. Sensing nothing other than muscle weakness, he put his weight on it and stood up.  
“What happened?” he asked. “I know I was hurt far more than what could be fixed in a day.” He rubbed his jaw a bit, wincing because of his hands and not the massive break Loki had caused.

“Thank Doctor Helen Cho. She created a regeneration cradle. It prints living tissue,” Tony said, the door to the bathroom opening for them. “Friday, get the shower going nice and warm.” Then he took out a straight razor and hesitated.

It said something as to how exhausted and shaken Stephen was that it took a minute for the shoe to drop. When it did, Stephen felt his ears burn in embarrassment and his heart ache with loss.

“Okay, I know this isn’t going to be easy,” Tony said gently. “If I’m being honest with myself, I know it wouldn’t be easy for me if our positions were reversed.” He gathered shaving lather in one hand and the straight razor in the other. “Please let me help? Just until Red gets back?”

The burning urge to say no was extinguished quickly when Stephen realized he really didn’t have any other choice. He could request a nurse, but that would just mean a stranger getting their hands on his face and body. 

Somehow it had never felt embarrassing when the Cloak helped him. Maybe it was because the Cloak was his relic, that its purpose was to serve its master in whatever way was needed. Or maybe he only felt embarrassed because Tony was so capable, whereas Stephen was broken.

For whatever reason, Stephen hated having to accept help from Tony now. He sat down on the toilet seat and tilted his head back. 

Sighing with relief, Tony began to apply the lather to his face.

“I once threatened it with this, you know,” Stephen said, his voice breaking the tension in the room.

Tony frowned. “You threatened Red with me shaving you?” he asked. “Why?”

“You remember the night you came to me at the Sanctum? When I was astral projecting and the Cloak was pushing us together?”

“Ha!” Tony laughed, though his eyes went sad in the next moment. “Yeah, it knew I loved you before I did.”

Stephen smiled right as Tony was about to pass the blade over his cheek.

“Hold still, Doc.”

Stephen obeyed while letting Tony finish up. When he was through, he said, “I threatened the Cloak with calling you over to help me shave. Instead of letting it help.”

The look on Tony’s face while he was shaving his own face betrayed his confusion.

“It loved to help,” Stephen said with a sad smile. “It saved my life the first time we met.” He thought back to that day and smiled. “Multiple times.”

“It’s a damn good companion to you, that’s for sure,” Tony said, finishing up.

“It was, yes.”

“Is,” Tony said. “I told you, I got a plan. You need help brushing your teeth?”

Stephen flexed his fingers a bit. “No, but can you—”

Tony handed him a toothbrush with paste already loaded.

They finished up and then went over to Tony’s ridiculously large shower. Even when Stephen had been a wealthy neurosurgeon, he hadn’t had a shower this large. Stepping into it was an instant relief, the warm water drenching him from all sides and washing away just a little of the fatigue.

“Hey,” Tony said, his arms open. “Come here.”

Stephen didn’t hesitate. He walked through the water and fell into Tony’s arms. His bare skin felt so warm when Stephen had been so cold. Tony ran his fingers along Stephen’s back and exhaled, the warmth of his breath hitting Stephen’s neck.

“So…slightly ulterior motive revealed,” Tony said, running his fingertips over Stephen’s bare back. “I just…” Tony whispered into his ear. “I was so scared, Stephen. I understand why you did what you did, but I couldn’t help you.” Tony clenched his shoulders just a little too tight, but Stephen’s wince made Tony release him quickly. “You needed me, and I wasn’t there. I didn’t know what was going on.”

The biggest regret of Stephen’s life was no longer allowing himself to be so distracted he drove his car off a cliff and destroyed his hands. No, his new biggest regret was not letting Tony come and fight for Kamar-Taj. All of this could have been avoided if he had.

“You would have won,” Stephen finally said into Tony’s hair.

“What?”

“We were fighting him using magic. You would have used your tech. You would have won.”

“He had the Reality Stone, Stephen.”

“And he was so set on killing sorcerers you could have blown his head right off.” He sank a little deeper into Tony’s embrace, the water falling all over them, little pools forming between their bodies where there was no space between them.

“I’m a fool,” Stephen said, the shame of what he’d done heavy on his shoulders.

“No,” Tony said, finally pulling back. “I know all about that shame spiral, Doc. But please believe me. This wasn’t your fault.” He turned around and got some pink soap and a hand towel. “But you and I—and maybe Loki if he can stop being a dick for five minutes—are going to get all of it back.”

Tony’s eyes ran over his body, but Stephen had never felt less desirable in his entire life. His heart felt like it had been carved out of his body, and it was still a little difficult to breathe. There was no way Tony could be thinking what it looked like he was thinking.

“Stephen?” Tony asked, lightly kissing him on the mouth. “Do you need help, baby?”

_Oh._

Considering the question, Stephen probably could have managed to wash himself well enough. His hands ached, but the wash cloth was large and he hardly needed to be exact.

But his heart was aching, and he missed Tony so badly, even while he was standing right in front of him. Needing help to shave had been humiliating, but he didn’t need help with this. Wanting Tony’s hands on him was a choice.

The look on his face must have been devastating because Tony put a hand over Stephen’s heart and looked deep into his eyes. “I’m still here. I’m not going anywhere.” He leaned down and kissed Stephen’s chest. “We’ll get it back. I promise. Now,” he said gesturing to the towel. “Do you need help?”

Lightly grabbing Tony’s hand, Stephen directed the towel back to his chest, and said, “No.”

The heavy moment was broken by Tony’s laugh as he began to slowly wash Stephen. The slow methodical way Tony cleaned him felt healing, like Tony was removing a layer of filth that he’d acquired in all his horrible decisions.

“Okay, now lean down a little bit, you giraffe,” Tony said, shampoo bottle in hand.

“I’m not a giraffe,” Stephen said, turning around. “You’re just short. Come to think of it, you’re even shorter now. How big are the heels in your shoes?”

“I’ll never tell.”

Tony’s fingers massaged Stephen’s head as they lathered the shampoo. The soft caresses eased something in Stephen that he couldn’t qualify. All he knew was that he could breathe just a little bit easier.

“Mmm.” Stephen hummed and closed his eyes as he let himself get lost in something that felt good. 

He rinsed out his hair, Tony helping to smooth it out before taking care of himself. Unwilling to let go just yet, Stephen wrapped his arms around Tony and held onto him from behind.

Tony turned around in his arms and held him right back. So, they stood there in Tony’s giant shower, Stephen heartbroken and defeated and Tony desperately trying to hold him up and save the world.

“I’m going to fix this, I swear,” he whispered. “I swear to you, Stephen. We’ll fix this together.”

Stephen liked the sound of that. He’d made a huge mistake not allowing Tony to help fight the Empirikul. He’d never do that again. He and Tony were a team.

“Together,” he said. Like it should have been all along.

“Okay,” Tony said, stepping out of the shower and handing Stephen a towel. “The world’s on fire. You ready to save it?”

Stephen wasn’t really ready to do anything, but he drew the last bit of energy he had and nodded. Maybe the world was too large a goal, too abstract. 

But he was ready to go save his Cloak.

*

“Okay, so I asked Friday to put together information on the Space Stone for you,” Tony said as he and Stephen were walking into his workshop. 

They’d gone back to Tony’s room to dress, and Stephen had been surprised to see comfortable sleep clothes in his size in a separate drawer. He’d put on the warmest clothes he could find but still felt a bitter chill in his bones.

“You’ll be okay if I leave for a few hours?” Tony asked him.

He wanted to roll his eyes at the question, wanted to say he was a grown man and had taken care of himself for a long time now, but he didn’t. Stephen knew he was completely defenseless at the moment, and that Tony had no way of knowing how defeated he felt.

On second thought, he probably _looked_ exactly as defeated as he felt.

“I’ll be fine,” Stephen said, because he had to be. Because the world needed Iron Man just as much as Stephen did.

“Okay,” Tony said, and gave Stephen a lingering kiss. “Just a few hours. I’m going to hop across the pond, see how things are going, move a few rocks, and be back before you’ll notice I’m gone.”

“I doubt that,” Stephen said, sitting in Tony’s desk chair. “But I’ll be fine, Tony. Really.”

“Right,” Tony said. “If you have any questions about any of that,” he said, waving a hand where Friday would project information, “just ask Friday. I’ll be home soon, and we can really get to work.”

“I can’t believe you’re leaving me homework,” Stephen said.

“Yeah, it’s pass/fail,” Tony said, spinning around on his heel as he walked backwards towards the elevator. “Fail means a super volcano explodes. But no pressure,” he said, hands in the air.

“You think that’s pressure? Go to med school. Or better yet, perform brain surgery.”

“Thankfully, that’s one of the few things I haven’t done,” Tony said, then blew a kiss as the doors to the elevators closed.

Stephen lifted an eyebrow at the closed doors. “Why would Tony need a medical doctor to examine the Space Stone?” he asked no one. 

It had been a long time since he’d been left behind, since he hadn’t been able to help, and it hurt. He turned in his chair to ask Friday to begin displaying the data Tony had collected when a flash of red caught his eye.

The Cloak was draped over one of Tony’s old suits. Tony had said that the Cloak was resting there, but Stephen had forgotten in all the turmoil. It felt wrong to see his friend so lifeless and still when it had been one of the most vibrant creatures Stephen had ever known.

He slowly stood up and traced the edges of its lining, felt the absence of life, the absence of magic in the most real way. Stephen couldn’t stand to have the Cloak down here in the dark when it had been hidden away for so long. 

He picked up his friend’s body and walked back to the elevator, asking Friday to take them back to his and Tony’s floor. He’d find a nice, sunny spot where the Cloak could rest while he and Tony figured out how to get magic back.

When Stephen got to their floor, he took a moment to look around, but settled on setting the Cloak across the back of a large chair by a window. The sun was shining through the glass, but Stephen couldn’t feel its warmth.

“Doctor Strange,” Friday said, interrupting Stephen’s mourning. “The refugees from Kamar-Taj have arrived. Wong is requesting access to this floor.”

_“Refugees.”_

“Send him down,” Stephen said automatically. He’d been so badly hurt at Kamar-Taj that he barely remembered what happened after the Inquisitor said ‘no more magic.’ Being able to see Wong and speak with him would help. 

He grabbed the blanket off the back of the living room sofa and wrapped himself in it.

“Stephen,” Wong said upon entering the room. 

Stephen stood up to greet him, and was surprised to suddenly find himself in Wong’s arms. Wong chased away the cold for a moment, so Stephen stayed in the embrace for as long as he was able.

“How are you standing now?” Wong asked, looking him over. “You fell so hard, it’s a miracle you were able to walk away at all.”

“I didn’t walk away, if you recall,” Stephen said, sitting back down on the sofa and wrapping himself up again. “Tony got me off the battlefield, got me back here where they fixed me up.”

The look on Wong’s face was somewhere between bewildered and relieved. “I’m glad. I saw Stark taking you away, but I was so worried when we didn’t hear from you.”

“With magic gone, how I could have contacted you?” Stephen asked. “Friday, does Tony have any spare phones around?” Tony no doubt had extra everything, and Stephen needed a way to contact Wong if he was going back to the Sanctum. No magic, no portals.

“I’ll have one delivered to the Sanctum,” Friday said.

“How many casualties were there?” Stephen asked. “The novices, the other Sanctum leaders?”

The silence between them stretched for a moment, then another, while Wong gathered himself. Stephen wanted to shake the answers out of him. 

“One of the elders died at the hands of the beasts after magic died,” Wong said. “The rest survived. They’re currently being interrogated by some UN officials, I don’t know who. I got out of there as soon as Stark sent a jet.”

Stephen hesitated before asking, but he needed to know. “My novices?”

“The boy,” Wong said, sitting down next to Stephen. “The one who would try to follow you around?”

“George?”

“Yes. He was badly injured, but I was able to speak with his doctor. He’s being well cared for.”

Stephen would see about that. Maybe Tony could help him find out where George was and what was his exact prognosis. 

“Stephen,” Wong said slowly, like he was afraid of whatever question he was about to ask. “What do we do now? And what of Thanos? How can we possibly defend the Earth with no magic?”

Stephen held on to the fragile hope that Tony had given to him earlier. Tony had a plan. Stephen didn’t know what it was yet, but whatever it was it was sure to be brilliant. It had to be.

*

Tony did a few circles around New York, waving to pedestrians mostly unaffected by the death of magic, but hey it never hurt to show his face. Once he knew he’d been seen by enough people to trend on Twitter, he took off across the Atlantic.

It took him seven and a half minutes to get to Watling Street, and another two to find the specific spot where the other Avengers were helping to move huge chunks of road out of the way to get to survivors. 

He found Rhodey right away, lifting a car over his head and flying it somewhere out of the way. Rhodey’s was the only friendly face he’d find here, but Tony steeled himself and looked for Steve’s shield.

Aid workers and first responders stopped what they were doing to look up as he flew overhead, all of them waving and cheering and looking relieved to see him. Maybe Steve had been right. He always could work a crowd.

He landed a few yards away from where Steve and Natasha were talking with a few people in bright yellow vests, Steve excusing himself to jog over to Tony.

“Hey,” Steve said, looking exhausted. “Thanks for coming.”

“I can’t stay for long,” Tony said. Just being there felt wrong. He knew sometimes appearances needed to be kept for morale, but so much was at stake and there was so little time. 

And it felt wrong to be there without Stephen.

“We have to fix this before worse things happen, and the clock is ticking,” Tony said, his voice low so only Steve could hear him.

“Worse than this?” Steve said, and Tony paused to look around the wreckage from ground level. 

The entire street had caved in. Cars were sticking out from under the rubble and God only knew how many people were still in them. And this was only one of the old roads that had apparently been held up by magic. 

“Yeah,” Tony said. “You know what a super volcano is?”

“Damn,” Steve muttered. “Yeah, the biggest brains should probably focus on that. Do you need Scott?”

“No,” Tony said, lifting an eyebrow because he didn’t see Scott or Giant Man, and Tony had no idea how Ant Man could be of use now. “Where is Scott?”

“Over here,” Scott said, sitting on a bench behind Steve and Tony, eating an enormous sandwich. “Can only do the big guy thing for a few minutes at a time. Gotta refuel.”

“That’s…inconvenient,” Tony said. 

“Tell me about it,” Scott said with his mouth full of food. “Wanda and Rhodey have been doing most of the heavy lifting, but they’re going to need a break soon too.”

A red mist floated across his field of vision. _Speak of the devil, and she appears,_ Tony thought. One of the cars sticking out of the ground was lifted up and moved over to the same place Rhodey had left his.

The red mist dissipated, and Wanda walked over to Tony, her eyes still glowing. Tony fought the urge to back up when her hand went to hover a foot from his chest.

She squinted and tilted her head curiously. “You took it off?” Wanda asked.

A cold wash of fear trickled down Tony’s neck. He knew exactly what Wanda was asking about. Stephen’s pendant was just a pretty necklace with magic gone and offered Tony zero protection. 

Something Wanda was about to realize.

“No,” Tony said, and held his breath.

Wanda gave him a look of deep sadness, like it hadn’t occurred to her until just that moment exactly how much had been affected by the loss of magic. Then she seemed to give him a closer look and rolled her eyes.

“Stop looking at me like that,” she said, irritated. “I’m not going to attack you.”

“Um, sure?” Because Wanda had literally attacked him a few days ago, but whatever. “Okay, but you get why the…” Tony said, gesturing to where the pendant lay across his chest. “I mean, you and I don’t exactly have the best track record.”

Wanda scoffed. “That was years ago. And we both made mistakes.”

 _”Years?”_ Tony shouted, but looked around at how some of the aid workers were watching their conversation and got himself under control. 

“You recall a few days ago, right?” Tony asked. Because seriously, it had been _days_ ago.

Wanda looked properly ashamed but then held her head high. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think I was attacking you, but I can see otherwise now.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, mostly because she had literally sent scary red magic mist to touch his body. It was a crap apology, but he knew there were more important things right now than his non-existent relationship with Wanda. All they needed to do was work together without hurting each other. “But never again right?”

“Of course not,” Wanda said, throwing her hair back as she walked past Tony to keep picking up cars. “‘Don’t use magic on an ally without their permission.’ Second rule of magic, Stark.” She walked by, chin up. “Everyone knows that.”

“Oh, snap,” Scott said, pastrami falling out of his mouth. “Here, you want to look into the camera like you’re on The Office?” he asked, pulling out his phone.

“Well, that was…weird,” Tony said to Steve. “But…sure. I’ll take it.”

“Good,” Steve said. “It’s way past time we put this team back together, Tony. I hate that it took a disaster, but if I have to, I’ll take it.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Tony said absently, watching as Wanda lifted another another huge block of stone into the air and off a car. “All apologies accepted at the end of the world.”

*

Stephen was just explaining that he knew Tony _had_ a plan, even if he hadn’t looked into exactly what the plan was just yet, when Friday interrupted them.

“Doctor Strange, Loki is requesting access to this floor.”

“Access denied,” Stephen said, rubbing his hand over his jaw. It didn’t hurt, but Stephen could still feel phantom pain, like it should have hurt.

“What did he do to get banned from your floor?” Wong asked.

“He broke Doctor Strange’s jaw,” Friday answered for Stephen.

Stephen sank back into the sofa with a grunt. “Thank you, Friday,” he said, embarrassed. By the end of this he'd have no pride left.

A deadly calm passed over Wong as he looked over Stephen’s jaw, then stood up and went to the kitchen. “Let him up,” Wong said to Friday.

“Wong?” Stephen asked, sitting up a little straighter. “What are you going to do?”

The elevator door opened, and Loki stalked into the room. “Finally. Strange,” he said, acknowledging Stephen like he hadn’t just broken his jaw with a sucker punch while Stephen had been clinging to Peter just to sit up. “Where is Stark? He’s supposed to be—“

A clean sweep of Loki’s knee had him on the floor, and Wong slashed a kitchen knife across his cheek before Loki gathered himself and threw him off.

“Ow!” Loki said, grabbing his bleeding face. “That really hurt! What was that for?”

“Do I really need to remind you?” Wong said, knife still in hand, standing in front of Stephen like a Wong-shaped wall. “I saw Stephen’s condition when he left Kamar-Taj. How could you attack a man while he was down?”

For a moment Loki actually stopped. He looked at Stephen and rolled his eyes. “I might not have been in my right mind at the time. I don’t think any of us were.” He went over to the kitchen to grab a hand towel. “Put your knife down, Wong,” Loki said. “You got your revenge.”

“Wong,” Stephen said, with an imploring tone. “As much as I’m appreciating this fight for my honor, I think you got him back.” And though he’d never admit it, he felt safer with Wong in the Compound with Tony gone. Shame washed over him at the thought of how far Stephen had fallen that he needed someone to protect him.

Forget being able to protect himself in a fight. At this point he was a _liability_. 

“Hmph,” Wong grunted. “As your friend I am pleased to do it, but where is Stark that he did not blast this one’s face clear off?”

“Yes,” Loki said, coming over to one of the chairs next to the sofa. “Where is Stark? He had an idea about the Space Stone and then he left me to do all the work.”

“Tony’s in England,” Stephen said. He felt like a cast-off housewife, left home while his husband went out and got all the work done. “He said he’ll be back soon and then we’d get to work.”

Loki looked over his towel and lifted an eyebrow. “Does he realize that every second that passes and magic is not restored is bringing us closer to complete annihilation?” Loki said.

“Do you realize that people are terrified, and Tony is a symbol of hope and strength?” Stephen asked. 

“Well, the symbol of hope and strength is going to have to catch up when he gets back,” Loki said, standing up and walking to the elevator. “Come on. The books I need to show you are on my floor.”

“Books?” Wong asked, all outward signs of anger gone, and followed Loki like he was the pied piper. 

Stephen reluctantly followed.

The door to the elevator opened onto Thor and Loki’s floor. It looked like the Norse version of Kamar-Taj had vomited all over a badly organized library. There were books everywhere, some books open on a dining table, some sitting on the sofa. 

Stephen thought Wong was about to have an aneurism. 

“There you are, brother,” Thor said to Loki as he came in from a terrace. “Please tell me where you’re going after everything—what happened to your face?” Thor asked, taking Loki’s still bleeding face in hand, giving the room a dark look.

Wong looked like he wanted to cower where he stood, but he braced himself and said, “I did it. It was my right as Stephen’s friend and protector of the New York Sanctum and its master. Loki attacked him while he was unable to defend himself.”

If magic hadn’t died, the look Thor was giving Wong would have come with thunder and lightning. As it was, Thor was over six feet tall and was approximately six hundred pounds of muscle. And a god.

Loki rolled his eyes. “I’m fine, Thor.”

“Thor,” Stephen said, “look, maybe let’s all sit down and talk about this. I think we’re all under a lot of stress. And yesterday was…”

Thor took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Then he took Loki’s face in hand again, cleaning off the dried blood with the towel.

“Hmm. That is fair,” Thor said finally, letting the matter drop. “But no more. He was in the wrong, but he is still my brother.”

Wong nodded and sank down into the sofa, upending a small horde of books.

“And you speak of that day like we weren’t all out of minds with shock and loss,” Thor said, sitting down next to him. “I feel like this is a nightmare I have yet to wake from. I cannot sense Valhalla, and I cannot feel the lightning in my veins.” His look was dark as he looked at each of the three of them. “I do not know how much longer I can take this.”

Stephen flexed his fingers and thought of Tony having to help him shave, thought of the days to come and his loss of independence, but stopped the uncharitable thought before it manifested. It would help nothing to compare losses.

“Not to worry, brother,” Loki said. The bleeding seemed to finally stop. Must be nice being a god, Stephen thought. “This is all going to be over very quickly. Either Stark’s plan will work or we’ll all be dead in a month.”

“Charming, Loki,” Stephen said, wrapping the blanket closer around himself. “I’m glad you have such confidence when Tony is counting on you.”

Loki waved a hand in the air. “Merely telling the truth.”

“Or a version of it,” Stephen said.

“Ha! No, just the truth now,” Loki said, and that manic look from the other day made a reappearance on his face. “There’s no time for anything else. No more stories, no more lies. Either Stark’s plan works and we find a way to defeat Thanos—who is coming, don’t doubt that—and live happily ever after.” 

He sat back in a chair, his eyes focused on something that only he could see.

“Or Stark’s plan fails, and Thanos comes and _hopefully_ kills us all quickly. But, if he doesn’t the universe will implode soon so at least there’s that.”

“Brother, stop speaking in such a defeated manner,” Thor said. “I’m sure you, Tony, and Stephen will be able to fix this. I have complete faith in you.”

“I don’t know why,” Loki said, his tone blank. “Without magic, I’m nothing. I don’t even know how I’m standing right now.”

They were silent for a few moments, Stephen wrestling with exactly how deep Loki’s words cut into him.

“Magic has been my entire life,” Wong said suddenly. “I’ve dedicated my life to its study, and have pledged myself to protect the New York Sanctum and its master.”

Stephen looked over at him at that. He’d known Wong was sworn to protect the Sanctum, but not to also protect Stephen. It shined a new light on Wong’s past actions, on how wary he was of Tony, of the healing cut on Loki’s face.

“Who am I without magic?” Wong asked. “And what is my purpose? What am I to do with my life if magic is gone forever?”

“Again,” Loki said. “If Stark’s plan fails, you don’t have to worry about it because we’re all going to die. So,” he waved a hand around. “Try not to fret because it’s all going to end soon regardless.”

“But I don’t want it to end soon,” Stephen said, finally speaking up. Now that he had started, the words seemed to flow out of him. “I owe magic my life. Magic gave me a purpose, it gave my life meaning. Without it I—“ He cut himself off and held up his shaking hands. Without magic, he was just an out-of-work doctor, a man who couldn’t help anyone. A man who needed his…

Oh, by the Vishanti what was Tony to him now?

A man who needed his _partner_ to help him shave in the morning. A liability. Someone that needed to be hidden away while the real heroes went and saved the day.

“Without it, I’m nothing,” Stephen said.

“No one is nothing, Stephen,” Thor said. 

“No, he’s right. He’s nothing,” Loki muttered into his hands.

Thor ignored him. “You are a father to a young boy, and a bondmate to a good man. And you are a friend to me.”

Oh, how Stephen wished that were enough. But as kind as Thor’s words were, Stephen needed a purpose in life. He needed to be useful, he needed to make a difference. He always had. Even when he was a neurosurgeon with his head up his ass, he had been pioneering new techniques to save lives. Maybe his motivation hadn’t been pure, but it was still a part of him.

And now, what was he but a pathetic, little man wrapped up in an ugly blanket wearing his pajamas during the day? Sitting among warrior heroes and gods.

“None of you even know the meaning of the word loss,” Loki finally said, pulling a winged helmet from a pile of random crap by his chair. 

Thor squinted at him. “Is that my helmet?”

“Shut up, Thor,” Loki said sadly. “Magic has always flowed through my veins. It was how I was able to fight. It made me a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield where my brother was always brute strength.”

Thor ran his hands over the handle of his axe, and let Loki talk.

“Even when I was at my lowest,” Loki whispered. “Even when Thanos was torturing me out of my mind, and I gave in to his insane demands, I could still feel magic. He could never take that from me.”

He looked small and alone, and Stephen almost felt sympathy for him.

“What do I have to offer if magic stays gone?” Loki asked no one, and no one responded. Stephen knew they were all asking themselves the same question.

After a moment, Loki shook his head and seemed to cast off his brief sincerity. He slapped his hands on his knees and gave a sadistic smile that Stephen hated. “Nevermind. That’s not a question any of us will have to answer if Stark doesn’t get back here soon.”

“You said you had a book to show us,” Wong said, looking amongst the rubble of whatever library bomb had gone off.

“Yes, what is all this?” Stephen finally asked.

“The contents of my brother’s pocket dimension,” Thor said. He leaned over the sofa and picked up a large shield made of bronze. “I’ve just found centuries worth of gifts I had given to him. Obviously lovingly cared for,” Thor said darkly.

“There was a century where every year you gave me a knife, Thor,” Loki said, with his face in his hand. “That’s one hundred knives. And don’t misunderstand, I love knives. But where was I supposed to put them all?”

“I don’t know!” Thor said. “You always seemed to have so many on you!”

“Yes, because they were in my pocket dimension!”

“Stephen…” Wong muttered, his nose already in a scroll. “This… If I am not wrong, this is one of the lost works of Aristotle.”

That got Stephen’s attention. The scroll in Wong’s hand looked ancient and on the verge of falling apart, and Stephen knew better than to doubt Wong’s knowledge of the written word.

Which meant…

“How the hell do you have this?” Stephen asked Loki.

“This—” Wong looked like he would faint. “This has long been rumored to have burned in the fire of Alexandria.” 

Both Wong and Stephen turned to glare at Loki. Wong looked like he was inching toward the kitchen knife in his back pocket.

“How dare you!” Loki shouted. “First of all, I would never. Second, I wasn’t even around at the time.”

“Then how do you have it?” Wong asked.

“I don’t owe you an explanation,” Loki growled.

“Our mother gave it to him,” Thor said, putting up a hand. “How she came by it, I have no idea. But I assure you, she set no fire.”

“Do you have any other priceless artifacts from Earth in your _pile_?” Wong asked.

“Probably,” Loki said, finally getting up. “But this is what we need to familiarize ourselves with,” he said, plopping a book down in front of Stephen and Wong.

Reading books was something he could do, Stephen thought, even without the Cloak as his page turner. He looked down at the page, resolving himself to finally accomplish something, anything, but then stopped.

Unsurprisingly, the book wasn’t in English. Or any language Stephen knew. One look at Wong told Stephen Wong didn’t know it either.

“Well?” Loki asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?” He shoved the book towards their noses and said, “Read it.”

“Loki, what language is this?” Stephen finally asked.

“What language—” Loki finally turned the book around and closed his eyes. His shoulders and face fell in disappointment, then his lips twisted in anger in quick succession. 

“What—” Thor asked, looking over Loki’s shoulder. “Oh. The translation spell.”

Loki clenched his fists, and his face went red. He turned on his heel, and went out to the terrace, slamming the door behind him. Despite the heavy glass, his scream of anger and frustration and grief rang in Stephen’s ears.

No one said a word. They all knew how Loki felt, could all understand his anger and pain because they were all going through it together.

United in defeat.

Finally, Thor sighed and turned away, opening the terrace door and closing it behind him. 

The silence was cold and heavy between Stephen and Wong. The blanket wrapped around Stephen provided no warmth, and the longer Tony was away the more lost Stephen felt.

“Do you think Stark’s plan will work?” Wong asked.

“It has to,” Stephen said absently. Because it was the truth. If Loki was right and they faced total annihilation, they absolutely needed Tony’s plan to work. There was no second chance.

Speak of the devil, Stephen thought as he saw Tony fly by Thor and Loki’s terrace. He seemed to see whatever was going on between the brothers and took another entrance.

A part of Stephen was ashamed at himself for feeling such an intense wave of relief at seeing Tony walk through the door, but he shook it off. He was too tired, and everything was too terrible to pretend now. He allowed himself to fall into Tony’s arms.

“Hey, you okay?” Tony asked, wrapping his arms around Stephen, chasing away the cold. “Everything went fine. I mean, not _fine_ fine, but I shook a few hands, waved to a few people, picked up some rocks. All good. You and Loki getting along?”

“I cut his face,” Wong said, looking through another set of scrolls. “You’re welcome.”

Tony snorted and shook his head. “Those two looked like they were about to melt down. I’m tempted to help, for Thor’s sake, but we better go over those plans. What did you think?” he asked Stephen.

“Oh,” Stephen said, looking at his hands. “With Wong coming back, I haven’t had time to look at them.”

Something dark and terrified flashed in Tony’s eyes, something that frightened Stephen. A fear that hadn’t been there before, not even on Titan. Stephen knew he should have looked at the data Friday had for him right away, but it hadn’t felt as urgent as putting the Cloak in a nicer place, in talking with Wong, in being around people who understood what he was going through.

“That’s okay. I get it. Magical mini conference to talk it out? Makes complete sense to me.” Tony stroked down the side of Stephen’s arm and gave him a genuine smile, the fear somewhat chased away. “Ready to get to work?”

“Alright,” Stephen said, although he still didn’t understand how a medical doctor could help. “Are you going to stay here?” he asked Wong

Wong looked like a kid in a candy store, but his shoulders sank as he said, “No. I have to return to the Sanctum. The other sorcerers will come with me.”

“When you’re ready ask Friday for the car service,” Tony said. “I set it up for the both of you.”

“No,” Stephen said like a reflex. He hadn’t been in a car in ages. He wasn’t about to start now. He’d rather ride around on Tony’s boot if he had to.

“Okay,” Tony said slowly. “Nothing you don’t want, Doc.” He looked at Stephen like he understood. “You ready to go?”

They took the elevator down to Tony’s workshop, Tony holding Stephen’s hand all the way down.

“So, cheat sheet,” Tony said as the elevator doors opened. “We have four of the Infinity Stones. Loki thinks we aren’t going to need Time and Mind, and I agree with him. The ones we need to focus on are Power and Space.” 

He pulled up a hologram of the Space Stone complete with a complicated design for what Stephen guessed was a device to power it. 

“I have Erik Selvig’s original design for the device that used the Space Stone to open a portal across the universe,” Tony said, taking the device and holding its hologram in the palm of its hand. “Here’s where you come in.

“Loki had to use the Space Stone to travel, but you didn’t,” Tony said. “You have that ring.”

“My sling ring, yes,” Stephen said, a little confused as to where this was going.

“Exactly,” Tony said. “So my idea is we adapt Selvig’s device so instead of opening a portal in another point in our universe, it works like your ring and opens a portal into _another_ universe.”

A heavy weight began to push down on Stephen’s shoulders, and his entire body shook with the cold. His hands were trembling, and he was having a hard time taking a deep breath.

Tony was lost in his explanation and didn’t notice. “Once we’re able to open the portal, I can use my tech to track down the gamma radiation of the Reality Stone.” Tony spun around to face Stephen again. “We go over, get the Reality Stone back, and boom boom woosh,” he said with a flourish. “Magic is back again.”

He said all of this with a smile on his face. Like everything he just said would be so easy. Like adapting a device used to harness the power of the Space Stone could so easily be adapted to open portals _to another universe_.

Like any of that was even _possible!_

“Have you completely lost your mind?” Stephen asked darkly, his body bent over as he tried to take a breath. “You want to use the Space Stone like the way I use my sling ring when they’re two separate entities entirely. How would we even go about doing that?”

Tony seemed to sense something was wrong, but there was no way he could have known how close Stephen was to just completely breaking down. 

Tony held up a finger. “But wait. They draw from different sources of power, but they do the same thing. All we need to do is figure out how the ring creates portals to another dimension. Then I’ll be able to adapt Selvig’s device to do the same thing. Magic, but with science!”

“Tony, this is not science,” Stephen said, already breathless in his anger and frustration. “Magic was destroyed. Our connection to the universe was destroyed, and we can’t just try to create another way to circumvent magic. They’re two different things.”

“Sure, but your ring there,” Tony said, tilting his chin towards Stephen’s pocket where his ring most definitely was not, “is able to show us how it creates portals. Then, instead of channeling power from the universe, we use the power of the Space Stone.”

Tony grabbed hold of Stephen by the shoulder to get him to look at the equation Friday had up. 

“It’s not as hard as we’re making it sound. This is really basic physics and—“

“Yes, exactly,” Stephen said, his voice growing into a shout. “It’s physics, which is not what my degree is in. How am I supposed to be of help here, Tony?”

“You understand how the ring works, right?” Tony asked, still like he was asking Stephen to pass the salt and not manipulate space-time. “Well, then all we need to do is get the physics of how the ring works down and then apply it to the device,” Tony said.

He said it like the absolute genius he was. The boy wonder that went to MIT at fifteen, who all of this came easy to, because he actually was a genius.

Whereas Stephen was just a man with an eidetic memory and a work ethic. He couldn’t play around with physics like it was nothing. He wasn’t going to be able to help at all.

“Tony, I’m not you,” Stephen said, his voice hoarse from holding in his anger and panic. “I don’t have seven Ph.Ds. I don’t have a degree in advanced physics.” He rubbed a hand over his face as he realized all of this was going to fall apart before it even got started.

“This is your plan?” he shouted at Tony. “You want me to use my non-existent knowledge of theoretical physics to break down the _magic_ of the sling ring so we can then adapt it for the Space Stone?”

“Stephen, you’re a scientist who interacts with that ring on a daily basis. You’re the best person for this job,” Tony said, his eyes imploring Stephen to listen.

“I’m not!” Stephen shouted. “I’m not the best person for anything anymore. By the Vishanti, Tony, did you really think this was going to work? Please tell me you have another plan? A plan that doesn’t involve me needing to be a genius.”

“You are a genius, Stephen—“

“No, I’m not!” Stephen screamed. “I’m a smart man with a good memory who studied very hard. But, Tony, this.” He gestured around the equations and problems he couldn’t begin to solve. “Tony, I don’t know any of this. I’m a doctor…” His shoulders sank a little further. “Was a doctor. Please, please tell me you have another plan.”

Tony opened and shut his mouth. “Stephen, I know you don’t think the two are related, but they have to be. If you could just sit down for a minute and look at the data—“

A laugh escaped Stephen’s throat. It sounded hysterical and desperate, even to Stephen’s ears. “This is it?” Stephen asked. “This is the only plan? Me?”

The heavy weight doubled down, which made sense. Stephen literally had the weight of the world on his shoulders. His shaking, tired, cold, Cloak-less shoulders. How could he possibly make Tony understand that he was nothing without magic?

“What happens if we can’t fix it?” 

“Baby, that’s not going to happen,” Tony said, grabbing onto Stephen’s shoulders. “Just look at these readings—“

“And if you don’t fix it? What am I supposed to do with the rest of my life?” Stephen asked, pulling away from Tony’s reaching hands. “Watch you go out and save the world? Watch from the sidelines while you actually make a difference and help people?” Shaking, aching hands ran through Stephen’s hair. He laughed darkly. “I’m not pretty enough to be your kept man.”

Tony lifted a finger and opened and then shut his mouth quickly.

Stephen glared.

“No. I need a purpose, Tony. I can’t go the rest of my life not mattering when I know what it’s like to actually matter. I can’t.”

“I know you’re scared. I’m scared, too. But this is going to work. Please, Stephen, we need to get working on this. The clock is ticking and the bomb is going to blow up half of North America.”

“My help is worthless,” Stephen shouted. “Who am I without magic, Tony?”

Slowly, like he was approaching a wild animal, Tony put his hands on Stephen’s face. “You’re Doctor Strange,” Tony said. “You’re brilliant and kind and mine. I love you, but Stephen, I need you with me now. I’m so sorry, but we don’t have time for this.”

It was too much. All of this was just too much. “I must be such burden to you now,” he hissed. “A liability. Give Stephen a babysitter—some puzzle to complete—so we can leave Avengers Compound for a few hours.”

Something shifted in Tony’s eyes, the same fear and desperation that had surfaced before returned. Tony bit his lip and took a deep breath.

Tony pulled up a chair and said, “Stephen, sit down. I understand that this is hard, but—”

“ _You_ think this is hard?” Stephen shouted. “How could you possibly know what it’s like to be so useless?”

 _“Stephen, sit down!”_ Tony slid a chair behind his knees and Stephen fell into it, half from the force of it hitting his knees and half from shock at Tony shouting at him. 

They were both shaking, but the haze of fear cleared enough for Stephen to see that Tony was terrified.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said, shaking his head and looking ashamed of himself. “I’m sorry, but Stephen, we literally do not have time for this. There’s a super volcano that’s going to destroy a huge chunk of North America in _days_.” He pulled up a screen and started a search. “And that’s only North America. I’m sure other parts of the world are about to fall apart, too.”

“The Stonetown of Zanzibar is showing signs of instability,” Friday said. “Several windmill farms in the Netherlands have fallen—”

“Yeah, thanks, Friday.” Tony grimaced and waved a hand to make his point. Then he turned Stephen’s chair towards Friday’s screens.

“Friday, show him,” he said. “Break it down.”

“Don’t bother,” Stephen said, getting up from his chair. “Magic and science are not one and the same. They are—”

Stephen stopped himself when a familiar equation ran across his field of vision. His pre-med track hadn’t required differential geometry, but Stephen had always liked math. Once you learned the equation, it was easy. Friday was showing him the metric tensor of a Lorentzian manifold. 

Or, in other words, the equation that described the space and time dimensions of the entire universe. 

He hadn’t thought of that equation for twenty years, but he knew exactly what Friday was showing him now. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tony point and drag a portion of the equation until it took up the entire screen.

Stephen sat back down.

“That’s the breakdown of your portal,” Tony said. At Stephen’s bewildered look, he continued, “No, science and magic are not the same thing, but they both abide by natural laws. Magic just draws power from the universe. But it still obeys the laws of physics. All we have to do is adapt them a little.”

Stephen held his breath. He understood what Tony was showing him. The smallest wisp of hope passed through him as he tried to wrap his mind around it.

The next equation started to scroll down the screen, and Stephen recognized that one as well.

“Is that—”

“That’s the breakdown of what your portal did when we went to the 13th Dimension,” Tony said. “Friday records pretty much everything. So this equation shows us how space and time work inside—”

“The metric tensor of a wormhole,” Stephen whispered. “Or an Einstein-Rosen bridge. Or my sling ring portal.”

Tony smiled and his shoulders fell in relief. “Exactly.”

“By the Vishanti,” Stephen whispered. It couldn’t possibly be this easy, could it? That he had learned what he needed to save the world as a gangly nineteen year old with no idea of how his life course was going to change.

“I’m not asking you to do this on your own,” Tony said, a hand on his shoulder. “But I know we can do this together.”

For the first time since he woke up, Stephen felt like he could breathe. He could help bring magic back. He could save the world.

_He could bring back the Cloak._

He felt a thumb trace across his cheek, Tony wiping off tears Stephen hadn’t known were there. It was difficult to pull his attention away from the screen, but Stephen looked up into Tony’s eyes.

The fear was still there, but alongside it was a look of wonder. 

“You are a genius,” Tony said, with the saddest smile on his face. “You’re the most brilliant man I know, Doc. And you’re worth everything to me.” 

Stephen couldn’t speak. His heart felt so full it might burst out of his chest. He’d felt so alone, the absence of Tony behind his heart leaving him feeling empty and lost. 

But Tony didn’t need the bond to show Stephen he loved him. It was obvious, and Stephen hated his own self-doubt that would make him lose faith when Tony had never given him reason to. Every step they’d taken since Titan, they’d taken together. Now Tony had brought Stephen along on his crusade to save the world.

That was _everything_.

With a gasp of joy that blew away the darkness, Stephen surged to his feet and kissed Tony like his life depended on it. Tony made a surprised noise and then moaned into the kiss, his arms coming up to wrap around Stephen in a warm embrace.

That’s what Stephen felt in Tony’s arms. Warmth.

Pulling away, Stephen let his forehead rest against Tony’s. Their eyes met before Stephen closed his and breathed Tony in. 

“I love you,” Stephen said, simply, with as much of himself as he could put into the words.

“I love you, too,” Tony said, rubbing his hands up and down Stephen’s arms. “You ready to save the world?”

“Absolutely,” Stephen said, smiling.

“Good. Friday, order some pizza. Enough for everyone,” Tony said, pulling up equations and schematics until the entire room was lit up in blue. Then he looked over at Stephen and smiled. 

“Alright,” Tony said and put his hands up like he was about to orchestrate a masterpiece. He looked competent and beautiful and he was all Stephen’s. 

“Friday, you ready for us?”

“Always, boss!”

“Good,” Tony said, looking back at Stephen. “We’ve got work to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All scientific terms are courtesy of research done by glaucous_atlanticus. They just thought to themselves 'hmm, what math would a pre-med student study?' and then got sucked into a hole for about an hour researching. 
> 
> The idea of Loki's pocket dimension having lost works from Alexandria comes from Foxglove_Fiction. Also, how great was the last issue of Loki, which totally confirmed my HC that Loki has a shit ton of crap in his pocket dimension, including Thor's stuff.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading and sticking with this fic, even through its angst.


	23. The Four Avengers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I suck at taking a week break. I really meant to, but then it occurred to me that maybe I was just trying to write way too much and that it might be easier on me (and everyone) if the chapters were a little shorter. I usually try to write three-four scenes in a chapter, which usually means they're between 8k-10k. That's a lot to write in a week. 
> 
> So I thought 'hmm, what if I tried to half that.' And I knew what I needed to write in order to get to x scene that's coming up, and then this chapter wrote itself in about three days. So please let me know if you think this is a good compromise. I'm not saying I'm not going to do the every two weeks updates yet (I don't want to pressure myself and I might need to write a longer chapter at some point), but it's definitely something I'm considering.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas.

They’d been working for twenty hours, munching on pizza and snacks in between asking Friday to adjust an equation _one more time_. Stephen had rolled his eyes but smiled when Tony gave him a pint of Stark Raving Hazelnuts, but wouldn’t eat it until Tony let him mix it with Hulk a Hunk of Burning Fudge.

So fussy, his Stephen. And with truly questionable taste because hey, his ice cream was delicious.

Whatever. More for him.

But more importantly, he’d do just about anything to see Stephen smile right now. Tony was no stranger to pressure, and had no problem with working under the gun, but the stakes weren’t usually quite this high. 

He ran a hand through his hair and played with his necklace. He had to keep going. He could rest later, he could absolutely fall into Stephen’s arms and recover from all of this _later_. First, he had to make sure there’d be a later.

_Step up, Stark._

“Friday, run the simulation again with the new figures,” Tony said. Stephen was leaning to the side in his chair, expression drawn and shoulder tense.

“Simulation failed,” Friday said.

Stephen groaned from somewhere deep in his throat and kicked Tony's desk so he’d roll away.

“You okay, honey?” Tony asked, and he didn’t need the bond to tell him the answer. Stephen had his chin buried in his chest and his arms crossed.

Stephen sighed. “I’ve never been good with failure,” he said, spinning around in his chair. “The only concept I’ve ever really struggled to grasp was magic, and that was because it was something so beyond my understanding. The Ancient One had to break me down before I was able to really understand it.”

“Oh?” Tony asked, because Stephen talking about magic without sounding defeated was to be encouraged. “What’d she do?”

Stephen just smiled wistfully. “Everest is very cold.” He stopped his spinning and took another look at the design of the failed device they were trying to create. “After that, magic came easier to me. Very easy, in fact. I just had to get over that initial hurdle.”

“As someone who’s seen you in action, I’m not surprised,” Tony said, erasing the adjustments they’d been working on and getting back to their last success. “Something tells me you don’t know how to fail.”

Stephen flexed his fingers and looked at his hands.

_Nope, nope, nope, just one shame spiral per day,_ Tony thought, which might have been unkind, but he couldn’t watch Stephen go down another hole when he’d just got him out. He quickly walked over to Stephen, took his hands delicately into his own, and kissed them.

There was a look of awe around Stephen at the gesture. Tony still didn’t understand how Stephen could still be so surprised at Tony showing affection, but he guessed maybe some wounds healed slowly. He’d just make it a point to show Stephen exactly how much he was loved. Oh, what a burden.

But what Tony really, honestly, truly still could not understand was Stephen saying he was nothing without magic. He was glad he’d helped put a stop to that, but the fact that Tony had to go so far as to help Stephen’s self-worth with astrophysics wasn’t a good sign.

Stephen didn’t have value because he could understand how an Einstein-Rosen bridge worked. Stephen had value because he was Stephen: a beautiful, intelligent, kind man who was the perfect partner for Tony and a great dad for Peter.

Plus, Stephen was so loving and kind. Wormholes had nothing to do with it. Stephen didn’t have to prove himself as a sorcerer _or_ as a scientist in order to have value as a human being.

Mr. Rogers had taught Tony that when his father had said the exact opposite. And damn if Tony would disagree with Fred Rogers. Figuring out how to recreate the Sling Ring was great, but Tony was going to figure out how to show Stephen he was more than just what he could do. Even if it took decades.

Which was fine. Tony was nothing if not stubborn. Pepper told him so all the time.

Tony was about to say something extremely romantic, debonair, and likely to make Stephen’s clothes just fall completely off his body, but then the elevator dinged.

“Hey, guys,” Bruce said, exiting the elevator with Thor behind him. “I would’ve sworn I said no strenuous activities for twenty-four hours.”

“Whoa, what do you think we’re doing here?” Tony said, not letting go of Stephen’s hands. “Unless me holding Stephen’s hands is so scandalous you’ll faint. In which case, sorry but I have to see that.” He kissed Stephen’s hands again.

“I feel so used,” Stephen said.

“Come on, baby, I’ve never seen Bruce swoon before,” Tony said.

“Tony,” Bruce said, rubbing his temples. “I know that the Cradle really does repair tissue like the injury never happened, but _it did happen_. I know Stephen isn’t running any marathons, but being up for a day doing strenuous work like this isn’t good for him either.”

“Stephen is right here and can hear you,” Stephen said, obviously miffed.

“Sorry,” Bruce said, shuffling his feet.

“I told Bruce that you were working on the Space Stone,” Thor said. “I know that you were counting on my brother for help, but he is…unavailable at the moment.”

After seeing that argument—and noping right away from it—Tony had an idea of why Loki might be unavailable. 

“What exactly are you two doing down here, and can I help?” Bruce asked. “You both need a break.”

“Do not,” Tony said, ignoring him and finally going back to their equations. “You know me, Bruce. I can spend days down here. I don’t need rest.”

“Does Stephen?” 

_Oof. Unfair. Penalty, below the belt_.

Tony took one look at Stephen, who was still a little sunk into his chair, looking tired and frustrated. And just two days ago Tony had seen him straight out of shock and grief and loss and _surgery_. He considered Bruce’s question again.

“I’m fine,” Stephen said, because of course he did. “I can keep going. The clock is ticking, Bruce.”

“Yeah, I know. That’s why we’re down here. We’ve come to tag ourselves in,” Bruce said, gesturing to Thor. “Go get some sleep, get some real food, then come back and we can all work on this together.”

“Okay, first of all: how dare you insult pizza and ice cream like this? Second—”

Tony was just about to ask how could Thor possibly help when he remembered all the times in the past few weeks when Thor actually knew exactly what he was talking about and was oftentimes the smartest person in the room.

Still, it didn’t hurt to ask. Respectfully, of course.

“You’re familiar with an Einstein-Rosen bridge, big guy?” Tony asked.

“Of course,” Thor said, looking over at Tony’s equations. “Loki and I used to play on one as children.” His face grew darker as he stopped staring at the formulas and got lost in memory. “Though I would prefer he stay far away from one just now.”

“What about this, Thor?” Bruce asked, showing Thor a part of the equation that had been giving Tony and Stephen trouble.

“Oh, yes!” Thor said. “I’m familiar with this. This is how Stormbreaker allows me to use the power of the Bifrost.”

“And the Bifrost is…” Tony asked, because he knew he should know this.

“A wormhole, basically,” Bruce said. “Asgard had one for millennia. It was their preferred method of travel. And Thor has a portable wormhole in his axe, just like Stephen has one in his pocket.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Tony saw Stephen pat his nonexistent pocket out of habit, of course finding nothing.

“Look, point is, we got this for a few hours,” Bruce said, shooing them out the door. “Go get cleaned up, get some sleep, relax for a bit. You can’t keep going at a high level like this forever.”

“Yes, please trust Bruce and myself to make some progress,” Thor said. “Also, would you please make an effort to talk to my brother? He is beside himself again, and I don’t know how to help him.”

“Sure. Babysitting your brother is exactly what I want to do in my short break time,” Tony said. 

Stephen hooked his elbow through Tony’s and started walking towards the elevator. “Thank you very much, Thor. We’ll be happy to look in on Loki for you.”

“Thank you, Stephen!”

They remained hooked at the elbow while they rode the elevator to their floor, but Tony maneuvered himself so he was wrapped around Stephen soon enough. Working long hours in the lab was routine for Tony, but he still sighed in relief when he felt Stephen’s warmth through his clothes. He kissed his cheek then kissed closer until he got to Stephen’s ear, giving it a playful nibble. 

Stephen sighed happily and smiled but seemed otherwise unmoved.

Sometimes it was better to just ask. 

“You want to skip dinner and fool around?”

Stephen finally turned to look at Tony, the smile turning a little nervous. 

“Not really,” Stephen finally said, which Tony totally understood. Everything was still too fresh, the loss was horrible and of course Stephen didn’t feel up to sex. Completely understandable. Tony mentally rewrote the next few hours: food, cuddle time, ask Friday to spy on Bruce and Thor’s work, more cuddle time.

Tony loved a good cuddle.

But before he could suggest his great plan Stephen asked, “Why? Do you?” Something told Tony that if he said yes Stephen would acquiesce to his wants. 

Which was kinda horrifying.

“Oh, well now, yeah,” Tony said, with as much sarcasm as he could muster. Stephen laughed at his own ridiculousness, and Tony gave him another kiss. “How about you, me, bed, maybe make-out a little?”

Stephen smiled through an exhale. “Sounds wonderful.”

The elevator dinged open and they walked out together, Tony still as wrapped around Stephen as much as he could manage while still walking upright. He was already mentally snuggling into pillows and Stephen’s shoulders when he saw a figure perched on top of the dining room table.

A split second before he could call his gauntlets, he recognized the figure through the dark of the room.

“Peter?” Stephen asked into the shadows, and Friday turned on the lights.

Sure enough Peter was perched on the table top, not wearing his suit but Tony could see the web shooters under his shirt sleeves.

His eyes were red, but Tony couldn’t tell if it was from tears or exhaustion. He looked like he was straining himself to maintain his crouched position on the table, which made Tony wonder how long he’d been there.

And why.

“You alright there, Underoos?” Tony asked, following Peter’s line of sight to the sofa in the living room.

“I didn’t know if Doctor Strange would be coming up on his own,” Peter said quietly. “I didn’t want to chance it.”

Looking at the sofa, at where it seemed to be slightly indented in the middle—like someone who weighed maybe five hundred pounds was currently laying there—Tony knew exactly what Peter was talking about. 

Maybe he should have told Peter that Loki had calmed down somewhat. But, more importantly, that protecting Stephen wasn’t Peter’s job. It was Tony’s, period. And especially while Stephen was…without magic.

He could already feel the tensing of Stephen’s body against his own, whether from Loki’s presence or from the blow to his pride at Peter’s offer of protection.

Walking over to the sofa, Tony leaned over and saw Loki staring at the ceiling. He didn’t appear to be lost in thought, he just seemed like he was moping.

“Hey, Snowflake,” Tony said, prodding him in the shoulder. “Any particular reason why you’re haunting my floor and freaking out my kid?”

“I wasn’t freaked out,” Peter said softly.

“My sofa is full,” Loki said, his tone flat and not objecting to Tony poking him. “Full of useless objects I have no need for now. Yours is not. And I didn’t do anything to the Spider child. I’ve just been laying here. Useless. Waiting to die.”

Scratch that. Loki had gone from moping to full-on crisis mode.

“You hurt my dad,” Peter said, and now he was just standing in front of Stephen like Loki was about to attack him. “He could barely sit up, and you hit him anyway. What kind of person does that?”

“Peter, it’s alright,” Stephen said, putting his hands on Peter’s shoulders. “I’m fine. Loki was extremely upset, we all were.”

“That doesn’t make it right,” Peter said, but he didn’t even try to remove himself from Stephen’s grip. “He hurt you.”

“The child is right,” Loki said, still monotone on the sofa. “Perhaps you should just put me out of my misery. Before entropy sets in. Or Thanos arrives.”

“Shut up,” Tony said, then took another look at Peter and wistfully released his very middle-aged dream of curling up around his bondmate and getting his cuddle on.

He cast a look of apology to Stephen, then clapped his hands together. “Okay, I call impromptu Family Game Night.”

Stephen looked more surprised than disappointed. “What? Now?”

“Name a better time,” Tony said, looking in the junk drawer of the kitchen. 

“When the universe isn’t about to fall apart.”

“No, that’s the _best_ time for Family Game Night,” Tony said, then whispered into Stephen’s ear. “Look at Peter, baby. He needs this. I’ve never seen him look so scared.”

“I know he’s scared, but I’m fine,” Stephen said, and he was absolutely not whining. No, not at all.

“I know you are, but maybe we should let him see that?” He grabbed the deck of cards from the back of the junk drawer. “Give him some normality?”

“I’m not objecting to spending time with Peter, I love Peter. But I’m _fine_. He doesn’t need to be this worried about me.”

Tony wanted to say that Stephen was right, and Peter was being ridiculous. But he wasn’t. Tony knew better than to say that, and tapped the deck of cards on the dining room table. “Come on, I won’t say a word when you try to hide cards up your sleeves. Promise.”

Stephen scoffed and pulled out a chair. “Oh no, you’ll find out my darkest secret,” Stephen deadpanned.

“Oh?”

“Yes, I’m terrible at sleight-of-hand.”

Tony laughed and finally coaxed Peter into ignoring Loki and sat down at the dining room table. 

“How’s Ned?” Stephen asked.

“I haven’t seen him. I’ve been here. What with everything going on, his family wants him close to home,” Peter said into his cards.

“I think that’s understandable,” Stephen said.

“I guess. I just…I’ve been at the Compound for days now. Just…what am I supposed to be doing? I know you said I couldn’t go out until it was safe,” he said to Tony, “but what happens if it’s never safe?”

Tony knew there was no point in lying to Peter when he was sure Peter had access to the internet and knew _exactly_ what was going on out there. Peter was a good kid, with a good heart. He wasn’t going to be satisfied not knowing when he could finally go and help. 

That’s why Tony had recruited him in the first place.

“It’s getting hairy out there, kid. I’m not gonna lie. I’m glad you and May are safe here in the Compound where I know you’re protected.”

“Tony and I, and now Bruce and Thor, are working on device that will create an Einstein-Rosen bridge much like my sling ring could,” Stephen said. “That’s how we’ll track down the Reality Stone and get magic back.”

“Exactly,” Tony said. “In the meantime, I won’t lie to you. I don’t know when it’ll be safe to send you out. I can call Steve, see what he thinks if you want.” 

The silence was heavy between them. Stephen looked between Peter and Tony, looking confused and torn between wanting to shake Peter and tell him he was fine and wanting to hold him.

“You’d have to be very careful about the others finding out your identity, Peter,” Stephen said. “That might be difficult if you were with them for extended periods of time.”

“But not impossible,” Tony said. “Is that what you want though?” Tony asked. “To leave the Compound and help?”

Peter put his hands in his lap, then scratched behind his ear. His eyes darted quickly to Stephen, then to Loki who was still on the sofa.

“Whatever you think,” he muttered, which was a far-cry from what Tony had expected, considering that Peter was the one who started this conversation. He and Stephen shared a concerned look.

“I’ll talk to Steve, then we can talk to May together,” Tony said, then shuffled the deck of cards. “In the meantime, the game is Five Card Stud. Aces high.”

“What are we going to play with?” Stephen asked. “I want physical evidence of how badly I beat you.”

Tony probably had some chips hidden away somewhere, but looking at Peter he didn’t want to pause to look. He rummaged through the pantry and found a bag of candy.

“This’ll work,” he said, passing out candy to each of them. “Tootsie Rolls are a dollar, lollipops are five, and chocolate is ten. How’s that sound, Peter?”

“Hmm?” Peter asked, lollipop already in his mouth.

Tony handed him another one.

They played a few hands with only a few Tootsie Rolls lost between the three of them, but the conversation hadn’t flowed as naturally as Tony had hoped. He and Stephen seemed to have mastered communicating with only their eyes but it didn’t help with Peter being almost completely quiet.

Which was weird because he normally wouldn’t stop talking.

“Two,” Stephen said, putting two cards down on the table a few hands in. Tony watched Stephen’s face as he handed him two cards and saw the slight twitch of Stephen’s lips at whatever it was he drew.

“That’s quite a tell you’ve got there, Doc,” Tony said, taking two for himself. Pair of queens. Not great, but Tony wondered if he could beat whatever Stephen had just drawn.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Stephen said, then put in another Tootsie Roll.

“I fold,” Peter said, troubling Tony a little bit more. Peter seemed like the kind of kid to put in all his chocolates in one hand.

Tony put in a lollipop, then Stephen put in two.

“At least try to be subtle about it, honey,” Tony said, matching Stephen’s bet. “Call.”

Stephen laid down his cards: Aces and Eights. 

Tony whistled low. “Dead Man’s Hand,” he said.

Peter made a noise that sounded too close to a sob to Tony’s liking. 

“You okay, kid?” Tony asked.

“Peter, it’s alright,” Stephen said, laying a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “It’s an old story about Wild Bill. Have you ever heard of him?” Stephen asked. 

Pushing the pot of candy towards Stephen, Tony watched Peter carefully. He wasn’t making eye contact. He just fidgeted in his seat, then scratched behind his ear again.

_That’s quite a tell you’ve got there, kid._

Peter shook his head.

“He was a gunman, back in the Wild West days,” Stephen said, taking new cards from Tony. “Legend has it he was holding that hand when he died.”

“How did he die?” Peter asked.

Stephen and Tony shared a look before mutually deciding to dodge the question.

“Paper cut,” Tony said. “Cards were sharper then, made the game more dangerous. Wasn’t he from Nebraska, Doc?” 

“Illinois,” Stephen said. “But he came through Nebraska so much of course we like to claim him as our own.”

“Fair enough.”

“My sister,” Stephen said, then stopped himself. He looked lost in thought for a moment, but then he looked up at Tony and smiled. It was like he was offering a part of himself up to Tony and Peter when he said, “My sister, Donna, and I used to play Wild West when we were kids. I always wanted to be Wild Bill.”

“What was she like?” Tony asked, because Stephen seemed more wistful talking about his sister than the last time he’d brought her up.

“She was a sweet kid,” he said, and his eyes looked like they were getting lost in some warm memory. “Smart. Way smarter than me. And way more of a troublemaker.”

“Who’d she pretend to be?” Tony asked. 

“Calamity Jane.”

“Excellent choice. She sounds like she was a great kid,” Tony said, looking at Peter and giving him a nod.

“Yeah, she sounds like she was a nice person, Doctor Strange,” Peter said at Tony’s prompting.

Stephen and Tony shared another look over their cards. That wasn’t the first time Peter called Stephen ‘Doctor Strange’ that night. It wasn’t a good sign. 

The mood wasn’t improving with the game, and Tony thought it might be time for drastic measures. He gave Stephen a raised eyebrow and hoped he could follow along.

“Must have been nice, having a sister,” Tony said, holding his breath. “I used to _dream_ of having a brother or sister. I didn’t have any playmates until I made DUM-E, and he’s got the IQ of a moldy dishrag.”

Holding his breath, Tony watched as Stephen searched his memory and finally figured out what Tony was doing. Or trying to do. Hopefully it would work and get Peter out of whatever shell he’d crawled into.

“At least you had your own robotics lab,” Stephen said, putting down a card. “There were forty of us to a classroom where I went to school, and we always had to share lab equipment.” 

“You had daily access to a lab?” Tony asked. “I had to sneak into my father’s lab, and whenever he’d find me, he’d chase me out and hand me over to whatever nanny was on duty that day. I had to scrounge for scraps if I wanted to make a friend.” He paused and motioned to the ceiling. “ _Literally._ ”

“Oh,” Stephen breathed and leaned back in his chair. “We used to dream of finding scraps. They would have been like gold to us. Once we had to create a rocket ship to fire off the roof of the school, and we all had to share the same scrap of aluminum foil.” He paused to see if Peter was following along. “And when we were done with it, we had to clean it with our tongues and use it to wrap our dinner.”

“You got to go to _school_?” said the lump that was hiding underneath pillows on the sofa. Loki sat up and leaned against the back of the sofa, chin on his folded arms. “That sounds like a dream come to life. I didn’t get to go to school. I had to have private tutors because Odin forbid there be schools that taught magic.”

“Oh, poor godling,” Stephen mock-cried. “Must have been nice being born with magic. I had to go to Nepal to learn. We had to climb up a mountain to get to our lessons. Both ways. In the snow.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Tony saw Peter crack a smile.

“God, when I was in Afghanistan I used to dream of snow,” Tony said wistfully. “All I had was a cave and a box of scraps.”

“Bah! There were journeys Thor and I took where we dreamed of having a cave!” Loki said, sitting up fully on the sofa, watching Peter’s reaction. “It would have been a palace to us!”

“You had an actual palace!” Stephen shouted. “Wong and I would’ve been evicted from our cave for not paying the rent.”

“At least you got to rent a cave,” Tony said. “I had to sublease my cave from terrorists who only accepted weapons as payment. We used gravel as a pillow.”

“Oh well, we had it tough,” Stephen said. “We had to make our own gravel. Every morning we’d have to crush rocks with magic or go without that night.”

“Luxury!” Loki shouted as he took a seat with them at the table. Peter wouldn’t take his eyes off of him and inched his chair closer to Stephen’s. “My father used to confiscate our gravel. Said we didn’t need to sleep so cozy when we camped, then he’d throw magma on us from a nearby volcano to keep warm.”

“At least your father took you to other planets,” Tony said. “My father thought Toronto was a foreign country.”

“I mean…” Peter said, softly. “It is.”

“Whenever we sat down for poutine he’d marvel at it like it was a foreign delicacy,” Tony said.

“Must have been nice,” Loki said, “having dinner with your father. My father was too busy ruling a kingdom. He barely saw Thor or I until we were old enough to learn statecraft. He used to call me Lonnie.”

“I don’t remember my father.”

Peter’s soft statement ended the joke, silence overtaking them. The glare Peter gave Loki would have severed his head clear off. His eyes were even more red, but his shoulders were squared. He was inching in front of Stephen.

The smirk finally faded from Loki’s face.

“I don’t remember my father,” he repeated. “And I lost my uncle, too.” The muscles in his right arm tensed, like he was prepared to strike. “And then these wolves came and attacked Doctor Strange.”

Stephen placed a hand on his shoulders. “Peter—”

Peter shrugged him off.

“These wolves came, and then he and Tony were fighting, and then he was gone,” Peter said in a fierce whisper. “And when he came back, magic had died. And he looked so bad, I thought—”

For once, Stephen stayed silent. Peter was shaking in his chair and the first tear rolled down his cheek. “I thought he was going to die. And then _you_ came over. You just started screaming, and I didn’t know what was going on!”

Closing his eyes, Tony cursed himself for being a terrible father figure. He’d been so concerned about Stephen, so concerned about the world falling apart, he hadn’t noticed that Peter had been going to pieces this entire time.

“And then you hit him!” Peter screamed at Loki. “He could barely sit up, and you hit him!” Tears rolled down his cheeks and he hissed, “You’re a god!”

Loki finally looked ashamed at his actions. He looked down at the table and fiddled with a Tootsie Roll. “You’re right,” he said softly. “I shouldn’t have hit him when he was already hurt.”

“You shouldn’t have hit him at all!” Peter yelled. “But that’s—that’s not—I don’t know.” He fumbled for words and the other men at the table waited for him. 

“You just hit him,” Peter said. “You hit him, and I was sitting _right there next to him and I did nothing!_ ”

The slow scrape of a chair cut through the silence as Stephen stood up and put his arms around Peter’s shoulder.

“Peter—”

“No!” he said, shaking Stephen off, but not harshly, like he was still afraid of hurting Stephen. “What good am I if I can’t even protect my dad? I’m Spiderman!”

Red-eyed, with tears streaming down his face, he looked at Tony, and said, “I can catch a bus mid-air. I helped fight Thanos on Titan. But I couldn’t stop Loki from breaking my dad’s jaw? What good am I if I freeze when things get hard? What am I even doing here if I can’t protect the people I love?”

Closing his eyes, Tony felt his heart tear itself apart. Here were the two most important people in his life, and neither of them understood something that even Tony had learned as a kid.

“You’re Peter Parker,” Stephen said softly, still with a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “And you don’t have to do anything to prove yourself. You don’t have to catch a bus or a punch. All you have to do is be Peter. Because I love you.”

Sniffling, Peter wiped a hand over his face and finally stood up so he could hug Stephen. For a moment Tony just watched as Peter sobbed into Stephen’s chest, Stephen letting out a few tears as well.

“No one ever has to do anything to be worthy of love,” Tony said, but waiting until Stephen’s eyes met his. “Not in this family. We don’t love you because of what you can do. We love you because you’re you.”

Stephen’s shoulders fell just a little and Tony saw him wrap his arms around Peter just a little tighter, and thought maybe Stephen understood what he was trying to say. He stood and leaned up a little to kiss Stephen, putting all his love and devotion into it. Then he wrapped his arms around the two of them, feeling safe and warm and happy.

“Peter.”

They all unwound themselves a little so Peter could face Loki.

“You don’t have to worry about me. I’m not going to hurt your father,” Loki said. “I didn’t really mean to hurt him the first time—”

“You have a weird way of showing it, Mr. Loki,” Peter said, wiping his nose on his shirt.

“That’s really gross, Pete,” Tony said.

“You’re right,” Loki said. “Regardless, I give you my word. And I’m sorry that you had to see that. It wasn’t my intention to do anything like that, but especially not in front of you.”

Peter nodded.

“Okay,” Tony said, releasing his hold on his family. “I think that was a good game night.”

“How?” Peter asked. “We only played for about half an hour?”

“Yeah, but all of our game nights seem to be interrupted by emotional turmoil, so really it’s expected by now.”

“I’m still tired,” Stephen said, not releasing Peter from his arms. “How about a movie night instead?”

“Oh!” Peter shouted. “Can we watch this really old movie I found? I think it’s called The Godfather?”

Tony groaned into his hands. “You’re killing me, kid. Yes, Friday turn on the Godfather.”

“Would I enjoy the Godfather?” Loki asked.

Thinking about what Thor had asked of him and how most if not all of Loki’s whining was probably very real made Tony sigh internally then said, “Yeah. Pull up a chair though, Snowflake. The sofa is ours.”

So, Tony, Stephen, and Peter all piled onto the sofa, Tony grabbing extra blankets to keep Stephen warm. They snuggled into the warmth and into each other. 

Midway through the horse head scene, Stephen leaned over and whispered into Tony’s ear.

“Thank you for reminding me.”

“Hmm?” Tony asked, distracted a little because…horse head.

“It’s difficult,” Stephen whispered so Peter wouldn’t overheard. “Being extremely competent at something and then losing it. You feel like you’ve lost your self-worth.”

Tony turned away from Tom Hagen and looked at Stephen’s beautiful face.

“Mr. Rogers?”

“Mr. Rogers,” Stephen agreed.

“And who are we to argue with Mr. Rogers?” 

“Excuse me, boss,” Friday said. “But Captain Rogers and the rest of the team have returned to the Compound.”

“No, not that Mr. Rogers,” Tony groaned. 

“They’re requesting to speak with you,” Friday said.

Tony leaned into Stephen’s side and kissed his cheek.

“Tell them we’re resting. Ask them if they need any food or medical attention. Then tell them to talk to Bruce.” He leaned back and watched Micheal Corleone slowly take over the family business. “I’m taking a break.”

Stephen smiled, made sure Peter wasn’t looking, and gave Tony a deep, slow kiss.

Hmm, Tony thought. Looks like he’d get his kiss and cuddles after all.

“Eww, guys,” Peter moaned, throwing a pillow on them. “I’m right here.”

“Yes, eww,” Loki said from his chair.

Fine, Tony thought. Kisses later. There’d be time. Tony would make sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the title of this chapter is based on The Four Yorkshire Men, which is an old Monty Python joke. Google it because it's hilarious, and Eddie Izzard did an update a few years ago that's just as great.
> 
> Half of the jokes that Stephen, Loki, and Tony are telling come from glaucous_atlanticus. If you laughed at all in this chapter, it was because of them. They are hilarious and a treasure.
> 
> I wanted this chapter to be funny and also a relief from all the angst, but also give Peter a minute. I felt like everyone forgot what he might have been going through in all this. If you have a minute or laughed even a bit, please let me know! Thank you again for all the comments and kudos. They keep me going.
> 
> I'm still sticking with the every two weeks schedule for right now, but you can check on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com) if you'd like to know if I'm posting early.


	24. Peace That Rises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so yes here's yet another chapter. The keeping it under 6k thing is working out pretty well, I think. Thank you to everyone who left kind encouragement in the comments. It really helped because I was extremely uncertain about the whole thing.
> 
> I _will_ be taking a week off this coming week though. And this time I know I will because the next chapter is in outline form.
> 
> Thank you, silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas.

Tony absolutely did not appreciate having his nap interrupted.

He’d waited until Peter and Stephen (and Loki, surprisingly) fell asleep before he let himself drift off. He’d only been under for a few hours before Friday gently woke him, telling him that the Secretary General of the UN was waiting to speak to him.

He groaned and was tempted to dawdle, but then Friday told him something that got him out of Stephen’s loose hold and running to the elevator towards the workshop.

“So to summarize, Mr. Secretary General,” Bruce said, waving Tony to run faster. “We have a plan…” he said, now trying to make it look like he was scratching his head. “It’s a great plan. And we’re all fine here,” he said with a wince, absolutely floundering. “How are you?” 

“Doctor Banner, the world is on fire. How do you think I am?”

“Hey, Mr. Secretary,” Tony said, physically pushing Bruce away from the camera. “We’re currently working on the whole ‘the world is on fire’ problem, and we should have a solution shortly.”

“We need a solution now, Mr. Stark,” the Secretary General said. “How close are you to solving this?”

“Closer than we were a few hours ago,” Thor said in the background, concentrating on the hologram of Selvig’s device.

“Is that Thor?” the Secretary asked. “Is _Thor_ helping you?”

“I hear the disbelief in your tone, and yet I do not understand it,” Thor said darkly, leaving the hologram to walk into the frame. He crossed his arms in a way that showed off the size of his biceps. “What about my helping on this is so difficult to believe?”

“I meant no disrespect,” the Secretary said, backtracking quickly in that way that all politicians mastered at an early age. “I wasn’t aware that you were a master at…astrophysics .”

Thor flexed his arms and set his jaw. “A king must be a master of many things,” Thor said. “And it would be more difficult not to learn the laws of the universe when you’ve lived in it for fifteen hundred years.”

“Yeah, Thor’s the whole package, it’s extremely unfair,” Tony said, trying to divert the conversation so he could _end it_. “Point is, between Strange, Banner, Thor, and myself we got this.”

“Every minute that passes is a minute closer to destruction,” the Secretary said. “Yellowstone alone—”

“Yeah, we know about the super volcano,” Tony said. “We could be working on it now, you know if we weren’t having this _extremely helpful_ conversation.”

The Secretary General looked unhappy at that, but nodded to acknowledge that it would be better to move on.

“That wasn’t the only reason for this call,” he said. “We’ve made contact with the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj.”

That got Tony’s attention away from Yellowstone, the Space Stone, and his family sleeping on the couch upstairs fast.

“We’ve signed a temporary arrangement,” the Secretary said. “Temporary because it had to be done quickly. There wasn’t time for extended negotiations.”

Oh, Stephen wasn’t going to be happy about that. Tony was already mentally penciling in his army of lawyers for Kamar-Taj even if he was still mad at them. The UN wasn’t going to bulldoze over Stephen’s people while he was still around.

“One of their requirements was to have one of their own work next to the Avengers,” the Secretary General said. Calmly.

 _Like it was nothing_.

“I’m sorry, what?” Tony asked. “There’s going to be a who on the what now?”

“A representative from Kamar-Taj will be arriving in a few hours,” he said. “They won’t be an official part of the team, but the sorcerers made it very clear they wanted someone present when decisions are being made. They’re to report back on any conflicts of interest between the Avengers and the return of magic.”

“We have magic users on the Avengers,” Thor said. “Several. We all want to see magic returned.”

Tony raised his hand. “As a non-magic user I’d like to have magic returned because I enjoy living.”

“Of course,” the Secretary General said. “And yet part of the _very quickly created_ negotiations put a wizard on the Avengers.”

“Sorcerer,” Tony said. “Or master of the mystic arts.” He put his face in his hands, then rubbed the back of his neck. “Strange is already here. Why not use him?”

“I did suggest that,” the Secretary said. “But there was concern about his…loyalty to you.”

Ouch. That wasn’t going to sit well with Stephen, particularly because he still believed that part of the reason why they were in this predicament was because he sided against Tony in the first place. Stephen absolutely did not deserve to have his loyalty questioned.

“They’ll be there in a few hours, Stark. I’m sure it’ll be fine. Strange will already know whoever it is.”

Thinking of the elders and how adamant they’d been to ignore Tony and how dismissive they’d been of Stephen didn’t give Tony much hope.

The screen faded to black as the Secretary General hung up.

“Sorry,” Bruce said. “I don’t think I messed anything up too badly.”

“I’m sure you didn’t,” Tony said. He tapped his shoulder, then said, “When all else fails, go with the Han Solo technique.”

“I think I was about five seconds away from just blasting the console, yeah,” Bruce said. “Steve called down a few hours ago. Asked for a sitrep.” Bruce cleaned his glasses while Thor went back to the hologram. “I let him know what was going on, but those guys are pretty much in the dark, Tony. When are we going to tell them?”

He’d delayed far too long already. Damn him and his need for sustenance and sleep. He considered Stephen and Peter, both getting some much-needed rest upstairs and knew he had to wake them.

No rest at the end of the world.

“Now,” Tony said. “You said it’s been a few hours?”

Bruce nodded.

“Hopefully that was long enough to get sorted.”

He asked Friday to put out a message to everyone in the Compound. 

“Avengers assemble,” Tony said. “In the living area of the common floor. Twenty minutes.”

*

Steve and the others looked beat as they walked into the common room. They’d cleaned up and no one looked like they were injured worse than a few scrapes, but the exhaustion was evident with every step they took. 

Rhodey looked like it hurt just to stand up, Scott’s shoulders were trying to escape his body and jump to the floor, and Wanda’s hair was still wet from a shower.

Tony wasn’t sure how he looked, but he was pretty sure he smelled like pizza and workshop.

Everyone settled in with various levels of grunting and sighing, no talking at all, just a bunch of exhausted people hellbent on getting through the next hour or so.

Tony always was great with big crowds. Small ones, not so much.

Bruce and Thor were going to continue their work downstairs, but Tony had had Friday wake up Stephen, Loki, and Peter. They were the last ones missing, and potentially the most important. And not only for all the questions that were about to be asked about magic. Tony needed someone on his side other than Rhodey in the lion’s den.

He paced the room, trying not to make it obvious how nervous he was. He snuck a glance at Steve who gave him a tired but honest smile that was probably meant to be reassuring. And it might have been if Clint hadn’t been sitting right next to him, giving Tony the most unimpressed look he’d ever been given outside a Congressional hearing. 

Natasha was next to him, eyes closed, curled up to his shoulder. It was the most relaxed he’d seen her in a long time. The last time he’d talked to her had been that day they’d all come back. He still didn’t know if she’d meant a word that she’d said, but Tony wanted to believe she truly wanted to put the team back together.

The question really was, did Tony? Because even if he did, he knew he never wanted to go back to what they had. That horrible, toxic place where Steve questioned every move he’d made, judged his every call and found him wanting.

No way to go back. Just forward.

Right when he was about to crawl onto Rhodey’s lap, Stephen walked in the room with Loki. A few steps behind was Peter, wearing his normal clothes and the Spiderman mask.

“I think this is everyone,” Tony said, waiting for Stephen to come and sit next to him.

“Bruce and Thor?” Natasha asked.

“Continuing our work down in my workshop. Believe me when I say that it’s a matter of life and death that we accomplish what’s needed as soon as possible.”

“I believe it,” Clint said, his tone and eyes hard, but his body still leaning into Natasha. “I just want to know what’s going on.”

A few soft grunts of agreement went around the room, everyone stating in various ways that they also didn’t appreciate being kept in the dark.

“That’s what this meeting is about, right?” Steve asked. “We’re going to find out what’s going on, what’s the plan, what’s happening.”

“Yeah,” Tony said. He ran a finger over the pendant around his neck and wondered even where to begin. There was so much that they’d kept from the other Avengers, so much he couldn’t share because it wasn’t completely his to share it.

And so much he didn’t want to share. Now that they were talking about rebuilding trust, Tony knew he was the one who was going to have to take the first step. There was just so much that had never been said.

“First things first,” Tony said, looking to Stephen with an apology. “The UN has negotiated with the sorcerers of Karmar-Taj and created a temporary agreement.” Stephen tried to keep that terrible poker face of his, but his eyebrows twitched.

“They’re sending a sorcerer over here, not to join the Avengers, but to work alongside us,” Tony said.

No one outright objected, but everyone shuffled a little in their seats. Looks were exchanged, and Steve sat up straighter in his chair.

“Why?” Scott asked. “They don’t trust us? We have one of theirs, and it’s not like we haven’t been feeding him.”

Tony hesitated on how exactly to answer that question, let alone how to answer it in front of Stephen. 

In the end, he didn’t have to.

“They don’t trust me to be impartial,” Stephen answered for him. He sounded tired and disappointed, but Tony could see the anger brewing just below the surface. “They think I’ll pick Tony over the interests of Kamar-Taj.”

“Wouldn’t you?” Loki asked, calling attention to himself when Tony would have played it cool. “If everything was on the line and you had to make a difficult choice, could you?”

The silence was thicker than it had been a moment ago. There was no more shuffling or grunting, no one moved or spoke. Stephen flexed his fists and turned to Loki, his voice full of venom, and said, “I already did.”

The subtle sideways glance Stephen snuck to Tony told him what that confession had cost. Stephen had chosen Kamar-Taj over Tony, or at least he’d chosen what he’d thought was best at the time over Tony’s objections. 

And he still blamed himself for where they were right now.

“Who are they sending?” Stephen asked Tony, breaking the silence.

“They didn’t say, only that they’d be here soon.”

“Okay, well, maybe we should have this meeting over by then,” Steve said. “We still don’t know what’s going on or what the plan is.”

“Right," Tony said. “Well, you all know what happened. Big giant, wolf things came out of the sky—”

“I have no idea what happened,” Clint said, leaning forward on the sofa, hands clasped together. “And it’s not because I wasn’t here or that I wasn’t briefed. I have no idea what’s going on because you haven’t explained it.

“Magic died, right?” Clint asked, waving a hand towards Stephen. “And the world is falling apart, and Thanos is on his way. _Again_. And all this time there’s been this secret order of guys defending magic for…how long? When were we going to be told about this?”

Stephen cleared his throat. “Ideally? Never. It was written in the Accords—”

“Fuck the Accords,” Clint said, his voice deadly calm. “Who the hell are you? I know who he is.” He gestured at Loki. “But I have no idea who or what you are or why we’re supposed to trust you when all this is happening because of you.”

“Yeah, no,” Tony said, standing up. He wasn’t going to sit here and let Stephen get run over by people who had no idea what he’d just gone through. What they’d been going through together. “You have questions? Fine. But you don’t get to be here, have no idea what’s been going on, and throw accusations in Stephen’s face.”

“Clint, let’s not go accusing anyone of anything,” Steve said, standing in between Clint and Tony. “We don’t have a lot of time, let’s try to be as productive as possible.”

“I’m not asking for anything unreasonable!” Clint shouted. “All I want to know is what’s going on. I took you to my _house_ , man,” he said to Tony. “I trusted you with my family’s life. But we got nothing from you.”

Tony was just about to open his mouth and unleash hell when a shaking hand landed on his arm. He stopped in his tracks, and turned to Stephen who seemed like he was ready to speak.

“My name is Doctor Stephen Strange,” he said, even though everyone already knew that. They all stopped and listened. One by one, everyone sat down again until Stephen was the only one standing.

“A few years ago, I was in a terrible car crash that damaged the nerves in my hands. It ended my career as a neurosurgeon. I wasted my time and money on surgeries trying to get back what I had lost, and when that didn’t work, I found out about Kamar-Taj.” 

Every eye was focused on Stephen, and Tony could see him hesitate. There was so much to tell, it was possible he didn’t know where to start.

Tony let his hand find Stephen’s, and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“There’s an entire world of magic and until now you’ve never known it even existed,” Stephen said. “But magic is a real, vital part of our reality and has been since the beginning of time. And now that it’s gone, everything will start to fall apart.”

“You said the Empirikul had the Reality Stone,” Natasha said. “They used it to alter reality so magic no longer exists. That’s why the roads collapsed? They’d been kept up by magic all these years?”

“Yes,” Stephen said. “And Yellowstone was kept dormant. And Pisa standing, and the windmills from falling, and the Taj Mahal from crumbling, and… It goes on.”

“And Thanos,” Steve asked. “All reports on this guy had him as unstoppable. We’ve never had the full report on what you did to stop him.”

“All we know now is he’s out of whatever hole you guys dropped him in,” Sam said. “So what happened?”

Tony and Stephen shared a long look, communicating as much as they could about what to share.

“Oh, don’t do that bullshit. It’s a simple question,” Clint said with a sneer. “What did you do to Thanos on Titan? We’ve never gotten a clear answer, and it clearly has to do with magic, which is now gone. So just tell us.”

Heat rushed up Tony’s neck to his ears and his visioned narrowed to Clint, sitting on his sofa and making demands of him, demands of his _trust_ like it was that easy.

Like any of them had ever done a thing to deserve it.

He took a long, slow breath—he swore he saw red—and forced himself to calm down.

 _Easier said than done_.

“I don’t know, Clint,” Tony said, his tone even and deadly. “Why don’t I just tell you? Why didn’t I tell you in the first place? What possible reason could I have for not telling you something that, admittedly, is extremely important?”

“Tony—” Steve started, but no, Tony wasn’t having any of it.

“No,” Tony hissed, pointing a finger in Steve’s face. “Trust goes both ways, Cap. And this has been festering between us for a long time. You know exactly why I don’t want to tell you what happened on Titan.”

Looking exhausted and frustrated, Steve put both hands up and said, “No, I really don’t.” Tony tried to interrupt, but Steve said, “Really, Tony. I have no idea. We’re completely in the dark about everything.”

“Clint said it all, Cap,” Tony said, and a part of him hoped this would be the end of it. “We trapped Thanos with a combination of my tech and Stephen’s magic. If I’d gone into detail, I’d have had to tell the UN about Kamar-Taj and that wasn’t something I was prepared to do.”

“The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj have protected the Earth and this universe from magical threats for millennia,” Stephen said. “We’ve been able to do that because we’ve remained in the shadows for all this time. It was completely unacceptable to tell anyone who did not need to know.”

“Cat’s out of the bag now, Strange,” Clint said.

“Clint,” Natasha said softly.

“What happened on Titan, Tony?” Steve asked again. “What exactly did the two of you do?”

“Why do you need to know?” Tony asked.

“Because I have a feeling it’s directly related to what’s happening now,” Steve said.

“Look, we’ve all signed the Accords, Tony,” Natasha said. “No one here is going to tell anyone about what happened. It stays in this room.”

“That’s—” Tony started to say, then laughed. “Oh, God. Do you really have no idea?”

“Maybe we should take a break,” Sam said.

“No, you know what?” Tony said. “It’s fine. I’m just shocked I actually have to say this. This is blowing my mind. But sure. Let’s talk about the real reason why I didn’t want to tell you about what happened on Titan. Because it’s not because I think you’re going to go blabbing my secrets around, Steve.”

“Okay, Tony,” Steve said.

“I don’t trust you,” Tony said, stepping closer to Steve, finally letting go of Stephen’s hand. “But I did. I trusted you big, Steve. But you never trusted me. You hated me before you even met me.”

Steve took a step back like he’d been slapped. “That’s not true.”

“Isn’t it? You treated me like garbage the first time you ever met me,” Tony said. Now that they were finally discussing this, Tony didn’t want to stop. He didn’t care if it was productive. If Steve honestly wanted to know, he’d tell him. “And Ultron? You found it so easy to believe that I’d somehow created Ultron _intentionally_. And you still blame me for Ultron.”

“I didn’t hate you when I first met you,” Steve said. “Look at it from my point of view, Tony. All I knew about you was your SHIELD profile and that you were Howard’s kid.”

Tony threw up his hands and started to pace the room. “Thank you! Thank you for saying it.”

“I had just come back to the world,” Steve said, following him around the room. “Can you blame me for making a bad judgment call?”

“Maybe not, but why did I have to pay for it, Cap?” Tony asked. “You judged me from the first moment. You never trusted me, but I was expected to trust you. And I did. And _what did you do with my trust?_ ”

Steve snapped his mouth shut, whatever he’d been about to say dying on his tongue.

“Ultron wasn’t my fault, but you were so quick to blame me,” Tony said, then pointed a finger at the room. “All of you were.”

“Tony, you have to admit if you hadn’t been toying around with something you shouldn’t have, Ultron wouldn’t have happened,” Steve said.

Tony was just about to unleash holy hell when a soft voice spoke up behind him.

“Steve, I think Tony would have accepted his part of the blame for Ultron if you hadn’t been so quick to assign _all_ of the blame to him,” Bruce said, coming into the room with Thor. “You never blamed me for my part. And I had just as much a hand in it as Tony did.”

Steve was silent again at that.

“So tell me again, Cap. Why should I trust you?” Tony asked.

Steve looked behind him to Natasha, who visibly narrowed her eyes. Tony would have been surprised, but putting the team back together was the smartest play, and Natasha had always been smart. 

And like he’d guessed before, there was always the chance that she really did want to come home again. That everything she had said about missing this place, about missing the Avengers really was true. 

Stranger things had happened.

And that was great, but he didn’t need this to come from Natasha. This was between him and Steve. It always had been, from the beginning. This apology was going to come from Steve or not at all.

So they sat there, while Steve read Natasha’s face and seemed to war within himself about where he stood.

“You’re right,” Steve said, finally. “I’ve always known you were right. Even when we were looking for Bucky, right when we found out, I knew it was wrong to keep it from you.”

“Then why did you do it?” Stephen asked from behind Tony. 

Their eyes met, Tony not allowing Steve to look away. He already knew the answer, they all did, but he needed to hear it. He _had_ to hear it if he was ever going to be able to be in the same room as Steve again and feel anything close to okay.

“Because I didn’t trust you,” Steve said.

Just hearing it took a weight off Tony’s shoulders. Something inside him eased, something that hadn’t sat right in him when he found out Captain America had judged him and found him wanting. Some old wound finally stopped bleeding.

“I should have,” Steve said, snapping Tony back to the present. “Even then, I knew I should have. I did think badly of you, Tony. But you proved me wrong the very next day. Everything I thought about you was wrong.”

He felt like the ground had fallen out from under him. It was only Stephen’s shaking hand on his elbow that allowed him to sit down with any grace and not just fall into a heap.

“I’m sorry it’s taken this long for me to say it,” Steve said. “But I do trust you, Tony.”

“Great,” Tony said, because he didn’t know what else to say. After all this time, Steve finally trusted him. What was he supposed to do with that now? He looked to Stephen for guidance, but he just nodded at him, a sign that he would support whatever Tony decided.

Tony wasn’t sure he could decide anything.

He wasn’t even sure he wanted to take that first step. Why should he take a leap of faith when he’d been the one wronged all these years.

“Um,” Peter suddenly said from behind him. Tony turned around just in time to see him take his mask off. “So if we’re talking about trust, maybe I should go first? My name’s Peter.”

Stephen made a distressed noise that only Tony could hear.

“Oh dear,” Loki whispered.

“Kid,” Tony said, and oh God, he wanted Peter to be better than him, but not like this.

Peter just shrugged. “I can’t hide forever, Mr. Stark.”

There was silence again, one that stretched out for long enough for Tony to wish Stephen had the Time Stone so they could undo what Peter had just done. God only knew what everyone was thinking right now. And just because Tony was considering trusting everyone with what happened on Titan didn’t mean he was willing to trust them with Peter.

Just when he was about to grab Peter and head for the door, Natasha asked, “How old are you?”

Peter straightened his shoulders. “Sixteen.”

“Oh my God, he’s a baby,” Scott said.

“He’s barely older than my kids,” Clint said. “Shit, I’m sorry I’m about saying ‘fuck’ earlier, kid.”

“Um, it’s okay?” Peter said.

“I knew he was young, but I didn’t know how young. This is why he’s for recovery missions only,” Steve said to Tony.

“Yeah,” Tony said, no idea what was happening or how this was going to end up. Before he could say anything to help, Stephen grabbed him by the hand and stood up.

“Would you excuse us for a moment, please?” he asked the room.

Everyone seemed to want to talk to Peter—understandable, since everyone loved Peter—so they all grunted out various affirmative responses and Stephen and Tony snuck out into the hallway.

As soon as they were out of sight, Stephen gathered Tony into his arms and held him as tightly as he could. Tony fell into Stephen, closing his eyes and breathing in the smell of tea and…pizza and workshop.

“I’m sorry, you just looked like you needed a moment,” Stephen said.

“What about Peter?” Tony asked into Stephen’s shoulder.

“Thor is there with him,” Stephen said. “Plus, everyone who knows Peter instantly loves him.”

“True,” Tony said and snuggled closer.

“What do you want to do?”

Tony knew what Stephen meant. How much did he want to reveal about Titan, about their bond, about what happened out there. There was little reason to want to keep it to themselves anymore. Kamar-Taj had been revealed, everyone knew he and Stephen were together, and they knew that they’d defeated Thanos with a combination of tech and magic.

There really was no secret left.

And yet.

And yet the bond was something that only a few people knew about. Well. And a shit ton of sorcerers. But still. It was something Tony hid jealously. He didn’t think he wanted to share everything with the rest of the team.

“We’ll tell them what we did,” Tony said after a moment. “But not how. Okay?”

Stephen pulled away from him and nodded. “Whatever you want.”

“Okay,” Tony said, then leaned up and kissed him. Then for good measure, he kissed him again. “When all this is sorted, can we please stay in bed for a day?”

“Mmm,” Stephen hummed against Tony’s lips. “Make it two.”

“That’s my man,” Tony said, then took Stephen’s hand and started to walk back to the living area. He stopped when he heard Steve’s voice.

“Look, of all the people in the world, the people in this room understand the most,” Steve said. “Sometimes in the heat of a fight, we have to do something that…well, maybe we would never do under normal circumstances.”

“It doesn’t mean someone is a bad person,” Natasha said. “It can be terrible, making those sorts of decisions.”

“I think we’ve all been there,” Sam said, gesturing around the room. “Some maybe more than others, but no one in this room is completely blameless.”

“We’ve all had to do things we’re maybe not completely proud of to get the job done,” Steve said. “But that’s why we’re here. To make the difficult call.”

“Hell, whenever I think about Budapest—” Clint started but was cut off by Natasha.

“Do not tell him about Budapest,” she said.

“Some of us have done things we…can’t really defend at all,” Wanda said slowly. Tony thought that was probably as close to an apology from Wanda as he would ever get.

“Whatever Tony did on Titan,” Steve said, “I’m sure it was because he had to do it.”

“Um…” Peter said. “I think you guys have the wrong idea.”

Everyone in the room seemed to be in ‘kind adult mode’, talking to Peter with sympathy and understanding and it took Tony a moment to understand why.

They thought Tony was _ashamed_.

It made sense. Why would he be so hesitant to share what had happened on Titan if it wasn’t something terrible. They had no reason to even think that it had to do with he and Stephen. As far as they knew, they’d met just prior to Stephen getting kidnapped, had a whirlwind romance that started in an intense situation, and had been together since.

And in their minds, whatever Tony and Stephen had done was enough that they would be ashamed of it.

With absolute clarity, Tony led Stephen back into the room, and sat back down. He wasn’t ashamed of Stephen. It was the complete opposite. He’d married the man of his dreams, and there was no way he could continue to let anyone think he was ashamed of him.

“Stephen and I got magic married on Titan,” he said.

“Oh, by the Vishanti,” Stephen whispered, exasperated.

“Is that…different from being regular married?” Scott asked.

Stephen shot Tony a dirty look, then said, “So never mind what we just said then?” He looked towards the Avengers and threw his shoulders back. “I’m the master of the Time Stone.” He hesitated and looked down. “Or at least I was.”

“You will be again,” Tony said.

“When we were on Titan, I looked into the future. The only way we could win was if Tony and I bound our souls together, combined our powers, and trapped Thanos in a prison made of tech and magic.”

He flexed his fingers and looked to the floor again. “If magic hadn’t died, it would have been an eternal prison. He would have never escaped.”

There was absolute silence for a moment while everyone seemed to wake up a little from their exhaustion to stare in confusion at the two of them.

“You bound your souls together?” Wanda asked. “How? A spell?”

“Yes,” Stephen said. “An ancient spell meant for warriors in times of trouble. We were able to share our power.”

A smile and a look of curiosity came over her face. “That’s amazing!”

“Um, yeah,” Tony said, kinda surprised at how accepting that response was but whatever, he’d take it. “Yeah, it was pretty amazing.”

“Souls are real?” Scott asked.

“Yeah, you can imagine how surprised I was,” Tony said.

“Oh, fuck me,” Clint muttered under his breath.

“Is it something you can still use in a fight?” Steve asked, then seemed to remember and backtracked. “I mean, once magic has been restored?”

“Yeah, but probably not unless we really need to,” Tony said, thinking of Stephen and his suffering for a lack of Bibbity Bobbity Berry. “It’s definitely not for everyday use.”

Natasha looked at Tony liked she could see right through him. “This is why you trusted him so quickly.”

Tony looked over at Stephen, and he knew he had the sappiest look on his face. “Well, that and other reasons. But yeah.”

“That sounds…really permanent. Can you get magic divorced?” Sam asked.

“Their souls are forever entwined, even when they enter Valhalla,” Thor said. “Where they will live forever.” And then he winked at them.

All in all, the reaction was way, way better than Tony had anticipated. Maybe it was time to stop always expecting the worse from them.

“Boss,” Friday said suddenly, “the representative from Kamar-Taj has arrived.”

“Oh, here we go,” Tony said under his breath. “No catching our breath at the end of the world. Okay, send them up, Friday.” He looked around the room, at the exhausted, broken team that maybe might be starting to come back together and mentally shrugged. 

“Can we please try to be cool in front of this person,” Tony said. “Let’s not throw out all our dirty laundry for them to see right from the get-go, okay?”

“Agreed,” Steve said. “This guy might leak anything to the press. We can’t allow people to lose faith in the Avengers. Everyone is counting on us to save the world.”

“No sorcerer would go leaking anything to the press,” Stephen said.

“Maybe we should shove Loki in a closet,” Clint said.

Thor grunted, but Loki just smiled. “Maybe you should.”

The elevator dinged and everyone stood up to greet the representative. 

Who turned out to be Wong.

“Wong?” Stephen asked, coming to greet his friend. “They’ve sent you to watch us?”

“Don’t be so surprised, Stephen,” Wong said, coming into the room properly. “They needed to send someone who was battle-tested, spoke English, and could handle…difficult personalities,” he said, looking around the room.

“Whoa,” Sam said.

“He means me,” Loki said, that devilish smirk still on his face.

“I absolutely mean you,” Wong said. “I will not hesitate to cut your face again, if necessary.”

“This guy cut Loki’s face?” Clint asked, looking impressed. “I’m sold.”

“No one will be cutting my brother’s face,” Thor said.

“Everyone, this is Wong,” Stephen said to the room. “He’s my friend, and assists in guarding the New York Sanctum.”

“I am also the librarian,” Wong said. “I will not be wearing a skin-tight suit,” he said, then looked at Steve, Natasha, and Peter. “This is my uniform.”

“And your name is just…Wong?” Steve asked.

“Wong.”

“Just Wong?” Scott asked. “Like Madonna?”

“Yes,” Wong said. “Just like Madonna.”

Scott smiled like Christmas had come early.

“Okay, well this was good,” Tony said, clapping his hands together. “Now, as for the plan for saving the world: Stephen, Bruce, Thor, and I are working on adapting the Space Stone to be used to open a portal to an alternate universe. We find out where the Reality Stone is, go over, get the Stone, get magic back.”

“That sounds like…a lot. How are you going to be able to search universes to find the Reality Stone?” Natasha asked.

“The Power Stone will be able to give us the boost we need,” Tony said, nonchalantly. “Once we have the signature, it’s just a matter of creating a portal and heading over.”

Everyone was silent and staring at him again. Why? What did he say?

“You have the Power Stone?” Steve asked.

_Oh_

“Oh, right. I might have failed to mention that,” Tony said.

Various groans and exclamations of disbelief went around the room.

“Hey, new start, right? All cards on the table?” Tony said, looking around.

“Anything else you might need to tell us, Tony?” Natasha asked.

Tony sighed, but felt lighter than he had in years. Maybe this could be a fresh start.

“No, I think that’s it, Nat. No more secrets.”

“Oh, if we’re getting all secrets out in the open,” Scott said, “a few years ago Hank Pym asked me to break into Avengers Compound and get a part we needed.”

“Um, what?” Tony asked, raising a hand. “No, you know what? Fine. It’s amnesty day, apparently. It’s fine, Scott.”

“Good. Also, Sam was there.”

“Oh, come on, man,” Sam said.

As the others talked and busted each other’s chops, Bruce pulled Tony away. “We should get back to the lab. I only came up because Friday said you might need my help.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, clasping Bruce on the shoulder. “I really did. Okay, let me grab Stephen and Thor and we can go.”

Just as they were all about to go back downstairs, Wong stopped them. “Stephen,” Wong said, and gave a regretful look to him and Tony. “Normally I wouldn’t have told you this, but considering the circumstances it might be best you know. You’re trending on Twitter.”

Stephen frowned. “I’m what now?”

“How do you know what’s trending on Twitter?” Tony asked, asking Friday to pull up his feed. 

“Because of my brand new Stark phone,” Wong said, pulling out a familiar, sleek design.

Friday pulled up his Twitter feed and the number one trending topics were #avengers, #whereruavengers, and #whereisdrstrange.

“Well, shit,” Tony said, then realized there was something else that he’d maybe waited on addressing for too long. If the actual Avengers had been terrified and angry about being in the dark, how did normal people without super powers feel?

“Okay, we might need to have a press conference,” Tony said. “Say, Doc. I know it’s not the way we planned it, but it might be time to formally introduce you as an Avenger.”

“Lovely,” Stephen said with a roll of his eyes. “I absolutely love the idea of being roasted alive by a mob.”

“Don’t sweat it, Doc,” Natasha said from behind him. “We’ll be there.”

Steve nodded, and it felt like an olive branch. “Yeah, we protect our own.”

Looking around the room, at people he’d feared and missed and downright hated at times, Tony felt a shift. The world tilted again, just a little this time, but it was enough. He thought maybe, it might be enough for a fresh start.

“Thank you,” Stephen said sincerely. Steve extended his hand to him, and Tony saw it the offer for what it was: an apology and an acceptance rolled into one. He held his breath when Stephen’s shaking, scared hand made contact with Steve’s perfect one, but Stephen didn’t wince once at the light hold.

One last puzzle piece slotted into place, and Tony felt like he had regained something that he’d never had in the first place. Like the impossible had just happened.

Feeling lucky, he grabbed Stephen and his science bros and made their way to the elevator. If the stars were lining up, he wasn’t going to waste them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who's left comments and kudos! Especially to those who leave comments every chapter. Seriously, every comment makes me happy. Thank you.
> 
> I'll see you in two weeks, but you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com) if you'd like.


	25. Into the Lion's Den

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left comments and kudos on the last chapter! I feel so much love from everyone, and I'm just very grateful for you all. Your feedback keeps me going. I'm very excited to post this chapter because it brings quite a few things together in (what I hope) is a little bow. Please let me know what you think, and if I managed to pull it off!
> 
>  **TW:** This chapter references Loki's intentional fall from the Bifrost. It doesn't get graphic, but it is mentioned.
> 
> glaucous_atlanticus again researched wormholes and exactly how all this would work if the Avengers were to try it. They are truly amazing!
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas.

“Sorry, honey,” Tony said as Stephen looked at the garment bag Tony’s tailor had sent over. “No bespoke suits at the end of the world.” He walked into his closet, and Stephen heard hangers being adjusted, clothing being ruffled as Tony picked out his battle suit.

“It’s fine,” Stephen said, because of course it was. Sure, he’d had his suits tailored when he’d been a wealthy surgeon, but not everything he’d owned had been custom-made for him. He picked up the bag and pushed aside the pride that told him it wasn’t right for Tony to be buying his suits for him. They’d come to an understanding months ago, Stephen accepting Tony’s financial help and Tony accepting Stephen’s magic. Tony still wore the amulet Stephen had crafted for him around his neck, even if it no longer worked. Magic would be back soon, he reminded himself. This power imbalance was temporary, and denying Tony wouldn’t help anyone.

Plus, Tony was right. Concessions had to be made at the end of the world. Stephen felt like putting on a suit instead of his tunic and the Cloak was already conceding some kind of defeat.

But nothing could be done about that right now. Stephen stepped into his trousers just as Peter opened his and Tony’s door—without knocking. 

“Hey, Doctor Dad, should I wear my suit or like, you know, a _suit_?” he asked, not noticing that Stephen was only half-dressed. 

He hurried to slip his shirt on. “Your Spiderman suit, I would think. It would look odd if you wore a jacket and tie with just the mask.” He fumbled with the buttons before realizing the little mother of pearls were magnets and that no fumbling or help from anyone would be required.

A part of him still cold from all the loss felt a little warmer. He snapped the magnets—buttoning a shirt with ease for the first time since his accident—and turned to address Peter.

“The press should all be here soon,” he said. “Go get dressed.”

Peter shuffled his feet and put his hands in his pockets. “I don’t understand why the press are coming here. It feels weird. This is our home.”

“Well, they aren’t coming up to the living area levels,” Tony said, exiting his closet. He looked gorgeous, of course. Just like he always did. Hair perfectly messy, three-piece suit with a perfect tie. He walked over to another cabinet that held his glasses and picked out a pair. “They’re going to an area especially made for them. You remember it, don’t you, Peter?” 

He put on a pair of aviators and threw Peter a smile. “The room we were about to go into before you turned being an Avenger down.”

“That room really is for the press?” Peter asked, squinting. “Wait, there wasn’t actually anybody in there, right? It was a test?”

Tossing a quick look at Stephen from over his shoulder, Tony said, “No, of course not. You passed the test. Great job, you. Ended up an Avenger anyway.” He looked him over, then frowned. “And why aren’t you dressed? Go. Be Spiderbaby.”

“Spiderman!” Peter said as he walked out the door.

“He’ll always be your Spiderbaby,” Stephen said, slipping on his jacket. The tie that had come in the garment bag wasn’t a clip on, but Stephen thought he could manage it.

“Well, hello, beautiful,” Tony said with a smirk. He retrieved the tie from the bag and draped it around Stephen’s neck, then pulled it just a bit to get Stephen to come a little closer. “We have got to keep meeting like this. In fact, I think you and I need to exclusively meet like this for, like, a month at least. Once this is over, of course.”

It was in moments like this—stolen seconds really—that Stephen felt like the impossible had happened. That the man he loved so earnestly loved him in return. It still seemed so unlikely, even with all the terrible things that had happened, with everything that might still happen. Even with all of that, in a way, Stephen still felt lucky.

He leaned down and kissed Tony, his arms coming around his back holding him tightly. Tony smiled and let himself be balanced a bit in Stephen’s arms. He sighed and kissed Tony deeper, inhaling sharply and pouring all his love into it.

“Gross,” Loki said from the open door. With a frustrated groan, they separated. “What if I was Peter? You don’t want to completely traumatize the poor child, do you?”

Tony pointed a finger at him and said, “Oh, you of all people do not get to talk about traumatizing poor Peter. And I thought you liked him.”

Loki actually seemed taken aback by Tony’s accusation. His eyes darted around the room and he crossed his arms behind him. “I adore Peter. I didn’t mean to hurt him.” He frowned, and it seemed like the words were torn out of him when he said, “I didn’t even mean to hurt you, Strange.”

“You have a weird way of showing it,” Stephen said, rubbing his jaw with the phantom pain.

“And speaking of weird, what are you wearing?” Tony asked, looking Loki up and down. Stephen also had to admit it black on black was a strange choice. “Are we going to a press conference where we’ll try to encourage and give hope to the world or are we going to a funeral for a mid-90s emo band?”

For a moment, it looked like Loki would make some sarcastic remark and would meet Tony toe to toe in cleverness. But then he seemed to shrink in on himself a little. The way he looked down for only a moment revealed too much. 

“My battle leathers didn’t seem appropriate,” he said softly. “Nor did my princely robes.” He ran a finger over the collar of his fitted black suit, looking unsure of himself in a way he never had before. “You think differently?”

Tony was looking at Loki like he was seeing through him. He took in the quietness, the unwillingness to wear clothing that showed him to be a warrior prince, and shot a look at Stephen.

Stephen shrugged. He hated that he couldn’t wear his sorcerer’s tunic and the Cloak. Wearing a suit only emphasized that magic was dead. And wearing the Cloak would have been akin to wearing his friend’s body…

He cut off that train of thought with a shudder and looked back at Loki.

“It’s fine, Snowflake,” Tony said. “But how about we change your tie. And maybe your cufflinks?”

Tony went back into his closet, and Stephen successfully tied his own tie.

“Why do we even have to have this press conference?” Loki asked. “Did your president not address the nation a day ago and assure them that we, the Avengers, had everything under control?”

“She did,” Friday said. “However, polling indicates that people found her voice too shrill to be comforting.”

“Oh my God,” Tony groaned, face in one hand and Loki’s new tie in the other. “The world is on fire.”

“Incoming communication from Doctor Banner, boss,” Friday said.

“Tony, there’s been an increase in volcanic activity at Yellowstone,” Bruce said.

“Oh my God, the world is _literally_ on fire!” Tony groaned louder.

“I’m not going to the press conference, Tony,” Bruce said. “Thor’s headed up to support Loki, but I’m going to keep working. Will you come down here once it’s over?”

“Yeah,” Tony said. “I’ll send Scott down now to see if he can help at all. Then when we’re done, the whole science gang will go.”

“You should probably send Wong, too,” Stephen suggested. “He’s had access to the Time Stone for years. He might know something I don’t.”

“Do you still want my help?” Loki asked, and if Stephen trusted him even a little, if would seem like Loki looked uncertain.

Tony looked over at him and tossed him a deep blue tie that somehow managed to take Loki’s outfit from ‘funeral’ to ‘five star restaurant dinner patron.’

“Uh, yeah,” Tony said. “We need all the help we can get. We’ve got hours, not days to get this right. And you were supposed to be helping this whole time, not laying around on my sofa feeling sorry for yourself.”

Loki looked like he’d been slapped, but Tony missed it, turning around and leaving the room, his words still lingering in the air.

Stephen barely remembered the aftermath of the fight at Kamar-Taj. He didn’t remember the flight from Nepal to New York at all, but he did vaguely remember Loki’s screaming. 

Stephen had lost so much when magic had died. He’d lost his best friend and his life’s new purposes, his home, and his passion. 

Hell, he’d even lost his mode of transportation. 

And while it wasn’t a competition, he could acknowledge that Loki had lost more.

“Come on,” he said gently. “We don’t want to be late.”

Loki tore his gaze away from the doorway and nodded.

*

By the time Loki, Tony, Peter, and himself walked into the ready room, everyone else was already present. Clint, Natasha, and Wanda wore suits. Rhodey, Sam, and Steve wore their military dress uniforms. Vision looked like himself.

The friendly conversation that was going on stopped when they approached, but not like it had before. There were no low looks, no more glares or snide remarks whispered. Natasha gave Stephen a small nod, Wanda a broader smile, Clint a grunt. Stephen gave a hum in return. He never could manage a full grunt.

Tony clapped his hands and started talking.

“Okay, everyone’s here but Thor so—“ 

“Thor is on his way up from the workshop, boss,” said Friday.

“Thanks, Fri. So, here’s what’s going to happen,” Tony said. “There’s a long table in there complete with place cards. Steve’s going to be on my left, show of solidarity, mending of fences, the band is back together, everything is going to be okay.”

Steve nodded and looked like he was listening to a strategy for going into battle.

Which, Stephen supposed, he was in a way. Stephen had never had to deal with the press, and social media had been mostly kind to him and Tony since he’d revealed himself as a new Avenger. 

But now the world was on fire, and the people demanded answers from their heroes. He didn’t imagine he was going to be able to hashtag himself out of his with a cute photo of him and Tony in an ice cream shop.

“Stephen will be to my right because he’s the new guy we’re introducing and also my magic husband and that’s where I want him, so there. And Spiderman to Stephen’s right,” he said gesturing to Peter. “I’m going to read a prepared statement, but everyone should be prepared to have questions thrown at them. There will be cards in front of you with statements should you be asked a difficult question.”

“Like what?” Sam asked.

“Like…literally any question about the last two years,” Tony said, already exasperated. “Any question about how exactly we’re getting magic back will be answered by me, okay?”

“Where’s Wong?” Wanda asked, and she looked like she actually wanted to know the answer. Stephen frowned, even though it was an honest question. Wanda met his eyes, noticed his questioning look, and just gave a small smile.

“Wong isn’t an Avenger, so he won’t be at the press conference,” Tony said. “But he does have knowledge of an Infinity Stone, so now that he’s settled he’ll be helping out.”

“Wong has prior experience with the Time Stone, so he’s down in the workshop, seeing if he can be of any help,” Stephen said. Tony had given Wong a room on Scott’s floor for several reasons, the most important one being that both Scott and Wong’s time with the Avengers was going to be either sporadic or temporary. And because—and Stephen could quote him—“that’s gonna be hilarious.” 

“What’s with the get-up?” Clint asked Stephen, gesturing to his suit and tie. He looked over to Loki with a sneer. “With both of you?”

“It’s a more formal occasion, I thought,” Stephen said, looking himself over and assuring himself that, yes, he did look appropriate for a press conference.

“You look great, honey. Clint’s just jealous,” Tony said.

“No, I meant— where’s the—” Clint said, then made gestures like a bird attacking his head. Stephen squinted at him, then looked to Tony in question.

“Barton—” Tony said, putting up a hand. Natasha put a hand on Clint forearm and whispered in his ear at the same time.

“Oh,” Clint said, actually looking apologetic. “My bad.”

It was then that Stephen finally figured out what Clint had been asking about. 

“The Cloak will be back where it belongs once all this is settled,” Tony said, putting a hand on Stephen’s shoulder. “Everything will.”

“Even the White House?” Peter asked.

Tony winced. “Okay, maybe not everything, but that’s what happens when you build your house on a swamp.”

As Tony continued to give instructions and answer questions, Stephen allowed himself to observe. The dynamic of the group really did seem to be improved from what they had been a few weeks ago. That really wasn’t very difficult, but Stephen knew that starting over and exorcising old demons had been important to Tony. The fact that everyone was together now, united towards a common goal meant so much to him.

And that’s why he noticed when Clint wouldn’t stop glaring at Loki.

“Should you really be here?” Clint asked Loki, interrupting Tony’s instructions.

There was silence for a heartbeat before Tony barreled through it. “Yeah, we’re not doing this right now. We need to get through this so Stephen and I can get back down to the lab.”

“I’m just saying,” Clint said with a shrug. “If we’re trying to show a united front to the world, I don’t see how having Loki here is going to help.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Stephen watched Loki straighten his back and relax his shoulders. Even without magic, he was a threat. Stephen’s phantom jaw pain could testify to that. And the Vishanti only knew how many knives he had hidden in that suit. 

Loki smiled devilishly and asked, “Oh, but aren’t I the reason why the Avengers even exist in the first place?”

“Are you serious?” Clint asked, looking around like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. 

“Clint, I think Tony’s right,” Steve said, putting a hand on Clint’s shoulder that was quickly shrugged off.

“You invaded Earth,” Clint whispered, his voice like a blade. “You attacked New York. You _violated my fucking mind_! And you think you belong here?”

Loki’s smile faltered for a moment. If Stephen hadn’t been watching carefully, he would have missed it. 

“Oh, no,” Loki said with that false smile. “I _know_ I don’t belong here. Unlike my brother, I’m no one’s hero.”

“Then why not leave?” Clint asked.

Loki spread his arms wide. “This is my penance, is it not? Your courts have convicted me and this is my sentence.” He looked around, then patted down his suit. “There are worse prisons, believe me.”

From behind him, Stephen heard the doors to the elevator open. Thick boots stepped heavily onto the floor and everyone turned around to see Thor in his full kingly Asgardian garments approach.

“Ah, brother! You’re just in time,” Loki said, that same devilish smile on his face. “We were just discussing penance and the nature of prisons.”

Thor took a look around the circle of Avengers, crossing his arms and looking disappointed.

“Oh?” he asked.

“Yeah, so big guy,” Tony said, trying to barrel through his awkwardness as much as possible. “You’ll be sitting next to Loki. If the press ask any questions in regards to the legitimacy on his place in the Avengers, you can just let me answer it.”

“Why would there be any question as to my brother’s place on the Avengers?” Thor asked, and even though he was answering Tony, everyone knew who he was really talking to. “Loki has redeemed himself. He’s shown his willingness to protect the Earth and our people.”

There was a heavy pause at that. Steve’s eyebrow twitched, Wanda looked to the ground, Rhodey looked doubtful, and Natasha’s face mirrored a lifeless doll. 

Then Clint broke the silence.

“Has he?” Clint asked. “I mean, _can he_? Can anyone make up for that much destruction and murder? How many people did he kill before he even got to New York?” He was quiet for a moment, his eyes glazed over in rage. His fists were clenched as he asked, “How many people did he have _me_ kill?”

“Clint, seriously, we do not have time for this,” Tony said, physically putting himself in the middle of the argument. “I understand where this is coming from, and we can discuss it later, but we are on a very real clock and this has gotta get done.”

“I don’t care right now, Tony!” Clint shouted. “All I care about right now is going out there with _Loki_ and saying he’s an Avenger, he’s my teammate when six years ago he got into my head and _pulled me out_.”

Natasha pulled Clint back when it looked like he was about to charge towards Loki. Peter came over to stand next to Stephen.

Thor uncrossed his arms and his red cape flowed behind him. He looked every bit the king that he was.

“I understand that my brother wronged you,” Thor said to Clint. “I even understand that his crimes against you were so terrible that an apology would just be a further insult.”

“Oh, I think I might shit twice and die if he actually apologized,” Clint said.

“Then a thousand apologies, Barton,” Loki said with a smile. 

Natasha twisted her body around Clint to hold him back.

“I understand that,” Thor said. “And that has been why I have allowed these slights against my brother.”

“Allowed?” Clint asked incredulously. 

“Well, he’s a god who weighs six hundred pounds,” Peter said. “So…yeah. Allowed.”

“Thor…” Clint said with a sniff. “I respect you, you know I respect you. But your brother is a _monster_.”

Thor shifted his feet an inch and everyone held their breath. One punch from Thor would be enough to kill Clint, if Thor wanted it. With a sinking feeling in his chest, Stephen realized that there was nothing holding Thor back. The promise he’d made all those weeks ago on the roof of Stark Tower was nullified with the destruction of magic. There was nothing to stop him if he let his anger get the best of him.

Stephen heard the low hum of Tony’s repulsors. Wanda brought her hands up to her hips and the Vision took a step around the crowd. 

“Go ahead,” Clint muttered lowly, still defiant in the face of a god. “Nothing’s gonna be able to stop you.”

Anger twisted Thor’s face before it was overcome with regret and anguish. His eyes darted to Tony, then he clenched his fist before dropping it.

“There is me,” Thor said. He looked to Stephen, then back to Clint and said, “I require no oaths to stop me from attacking my teammates in anger. Even if your words are venomous.”

“His words are truth, brother,” Loki said. The muscles in his jaw twitched and Stephen thought if it was a lie, it was a masterful one. “I am a monster.”

“No, brother, you’re not a monster,” Thor said sadly. “You’re just a spoiled rotten brat who enjoys being a pain in the backside.”

Loki’s eyes went wide and his mouth dropped.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Thor said, rolling his eyes. “You stabbed me just the other day.”

“He stabbed you?” Natasha asked.

“Just a little,” Thor said, then smiled. “We’re getting off topic.” He turned again to Clint and said, “You have said terrible things about my brother. I have allowed it because you do not know what my brother endured that led him to attack the Earth.”

For the first time since the beginning of the conversation, Loki looked worried. 

“Brother,” he whispered, then shook his head.

“No, brother,” Thor said. “Clint is right, in a way. They should know the truth of what happened.”

“It won’t make a difference,” Loki said. “Everyone sees me as they wish to see me. It will be nothing to them.”

“Aww, no one understands me,” Clint said in a mocking tone. 

“Maybe listen if you want to know the answer, Barton,” Stephen said. 

“Few of you have met the Mad Titan Thanos,” Thor said. “I pray you never do. He is a madman, in love with death itself. He’s created torture devices the likes of which you could never even imagine. To fall into his hold is to _wish_ for death.”

“Are you trying to scare us?” Clint asked. 

“He is on his way, Barton. Are you not scared already?” Thor said lowly, his voice deep and sorrowful. “My brother—”

Loki kicked Thor in the shins, then got close to him. “Brother, do not do this.”

“Loki,” Thor said gently, putting his hand on the back of Loki’s neck. “This is a second chance for you. This team, this world…it’s a chance at a new life. But we cannot completely forget what happened to get us here.”

“What?” Loki asked with a sneer. “The warmongering, the genocide, the pillaging?”

“Yes,” Thor said sadly. “It pains me, brother, but those things are the reason that Asgard is gone. We had to face the mistakes of our past and now we have to keep paying for them. We destroyed worlds and reaped the benefits for millennia. Now it’s our turn to be refugees.”

“This is none of their business!” Loki hissed, like he was fighting a losing battle.

Thor just smiled sadly. “You know that is not true.”

Then he turned to the Avengers and said, “Years ago, before I met any of you, my brother attempted to end his life by falling from the Bifrost.” Everyone stopped and watched, no other words were said. “The Bifrost is a wormhole. When he fell he encountered—” 

“He survived falling into a wormhole? Wouldn’t that kill him instantly?” Wanda asked, amazed more than terrified.

“I am a god,” Loki sneered.

“He did, yes,” Thor said. “And when he did this, he was captured and tortured by Thanos and his children.” Thor was quiet for a moment, to allow his words to sink in. No one moved, and no one spoke. Even Clint was silent. “He was forced to invade the Earth. It was with Thanos’ army he did so.”

The silence stretched across the Avengers at Thor’s admission that Loki had attempted suicide. That Loki would have succeeded if Thanos hadn’t plucked him from a wormhole.

“Is that supposed to make it better somehow?” Clint asked. “Am I supposed to feel bad for you?” he asked Loki. “You were tortured by some guy and suddenly that makes it okay that you…did what you did?”

“No,” Loki said. His smirk was gone, and in its place was a solemn expression Stephen had only seen a few times before. “I wouldn’t.”

“He didn’t have a choice, Clint,” Thor said.

“Oh, but I did, brother,” Loki said. “That’s what you’ve never been able to understand. I could have said no. I did say no, at first. But the horrors of Thanos’ torture chambers…” he grew silent, as though he was reliving those horrors. “They are designed to keep you alive, you know? They were created to inflict the most mental and physical pain you can stand. They take you to the brink of death, have you begging to please kill me, please,” Loki said, a lost look in his eyes. His breaths were coming out in pants and he seemed lost in a nightmare. “But they never do. They never just let you die. They just let you rest enough so you’re aware the next time they torture you.”

“And that is why it is not your fault, brother,” Thor said softly.

“Oh, but it is,” Loki hissed. “Because I know the truth. The truth is a real hero would have just allowed himself to be tortured over and over again for the rest of eternity rather than kill one innocent person.” He looked over at Thor and shrugged. “That’s the truth you refuse to accept, brother. That I could have allowed the torture and not attacked the Earth. That would have been the heroic thing to do.”

“Loki…”

“It’s what you would have done,” Loki said with a sigh. “I know you would. It was my every thought when they woke me up for the day’s session. ‘Thor would endure this rather than give in.’ I told that to myself every day.

“I managed to hold out for…I don’t know how long. It felt like an age. But I couldn’t hold out forever,” he said softly before once again looking at Thor. His eyes held an apology and rage that Stephen couldn’t begin to understand. “So, Barton has every reason to be angry with me. If I had been a stronger Loki, the New York attack would never have happened.”

He pulled himself up and smiled. “But then the Avengers would have never gotten together in the first place. So…you’re welcome.”

Clint studied his shoes for a moment before coming over to Loki and Thor. “Did all that really happen? With the torture and …everything?”

Loki stood straight in front of the man he’d wronged. He looked Clint in the eye and said, “Yes.”

Clint nodded but turned away. Stephen knew that look. That was the look of a person when something big changed. When they’d received some small piece of information that changed their entire world view. Clint’s world was tilting. Stephen could only hope it might make him a little more open to talking.

Clint sniffed and put his hands in his pocket, then turned to face Loki.

“I don’t care,” he said, his voice rough. “It doesn’t excuse what you did to me.”

Loki nodded, face completely devoid of a smile. “No, it does not.”

“No,” Clint said, shaking his head with eyes of steel, but his voice was —not soft—but just a little less hard than it had been. The look he gave Loki wasn’t warm, but it was just slightly less venomous than it had been before.

It was a baby step, and that’s all any of them could ask for.

*

Camera flashed as Stephen and the other Avengers took their seats at the long table. He saw the note cards that Tony had mentioned and glanced through them. They were short, sound-bite responses to answers about how he and the team felt about his addition (great, so welcoming!), how he was responding to the destruction of magic (a shock and loss, but that only makes its return more imperative!), and what he thought of the plan to get it back (extremely confident, got to get back to it, bye!).

He schooled his face to ‘polite but attentive’ as Tony cleared his throat and read his statement to the press. 

“Good evening,” he said. His face and tone were more solemn than Stephen had ever seen. Tony had always been a showman. Even before they’d met, Stephen couldn’t help but pay attention to his press conferences. Tony was a force of nature, impossible to ignore.

The way the press died down and silence reigned showed he still was.

“First let me say, I understand why people are scared. It’s a scary time out there,” he said, and gestured to both Stephen and Steve with his hands. “The Avengers have been working hand in hand with the United Nations where we can to help. We’ve added three new heroes to our rosters: Doctor Stephen Strange, Spiderman, and Loki. They’re valuable additions to the Avengers, and they’ll be helping in the current crisis.

“But that’s just putting a band-aid on a wound. As most of you know by now, an extra dimensional threat came to Earth and destroyed magic.” He paused as reporters mumbled to each other. “Now, it might come as a surprise to you that magic is real, but it shouldn’t. We’ve known magic is real since the 2012 Battle of New York.”

Loki shifted in his seat to Stephen’s right.

“That being said, we were unprepared for its destruction. We are working hard now and we will be enacting a plan that will assure its return. Now, for obvious reasons we can’t give too many details of the plan away.” He paused and finally gave one of his smiles to the cameras. “But I assure you, you folks will be the first I call when we save the day.”

The assembled Avengers smiled and laughed lowly at Tony’s joke in a show of solidarity.

“Now, we only have time for a few questions,” Tony said. “We have to go save the world after all. But we’ll take a few. Let’s try to keep on-topic.”

A blond woman in a power suit raised her hand and stood up first. Tony sighed and leaned back in his chair, but asked, “Yes, Ms. Everhart?”

“What’s the team dynamic like after the massive falling out two years ago?” she asked. “Are you able to put aside what happened and work together?”

“Excellent question,” Tony said, “and yes. After the recent fight with the being known as Thanos, we all had our ‘come to Jesus' moment.” He looked down the row at Thor and Loki. “Er, come to the Norns moment.” He paused as the crowd of reporters chuckled. “Look, a lot happened in a very short amount of time.” He looked around at the room, and Stephen thought this was Tony in his element. He had the entire crowd eating from the palm of his hand. “A lot of people, myself included, almost didn’t make it home. That tends to show us our priorities.”

He looked to Steve expectantly, who nodded. “That’s right,” Steve said. “And our priority is saving the world. And we can only do that if we work together.”

“And that’s what we’re going to do,” Tony said with a smile. “Next question?”

A man with white hair and an ugly suit raised his hand. “How are you going to adjust for the lack of magic now? You added Doctor Strange and Loki, we assume, because of their knowledge and skill with magic. Well, how are you going to accommodate for them being, essentially, worthless to the team?”

The man’s question stabbed Stephen directly in the heart. He was surprised he wasn’t bleeding out onto the table. If he had the awareness to move his head, he imagined Loki looked the same.

Tony looked flummoxed. “Wow. I’ve heard a few whoopers in my time, but that—”

Stephen put his hand on Tony’s arm, interrupting him. He wasn’t completely useless now that magic was gone. He’d proven that down in the workshop. Even without his hands he was a doctor. And even without his magic he was a sorcerer. 

And he was sitting between the two people who were his family.

“Loki and I have advanced knowledge of the tools we’ll be using in our fight against the Empirikul—the enemy that came and destroyed magic. I assure you, we are still able to use our knowledge to aid the Earth.” With as genuine a smile as he could manage, he said, “But I thank you for your concern.”

“Right,” Tony said, not completely certain he wanted to move on, but doing so anyway. “One last—”

“We’ve all heard the story that Loki told the Hague,” another reporter shouted without being acknowledged by Tony. “But this is New York. We were directly affected by his attack. Why should New Yorkers—hell, why should _anyone_ trust this man after what he did?”

Several things happened all at once: Thor’s chair made a loud whine as it was scraped along the floor, Tony put up a hand, giving a dirty look to the reporter who’d asked the question, Peter looked like he wanted to shout a defense but was torn, and Loki himself just sat there silently. Outwardly, it might have appeared he had a nonchalant look on his face, uncaring about what was going on around him.

But Stephen could see through that to the ache and emptiness, the sense of loss that hadn’t started with the death of magic.

With that in mind, Stephen got to the mic first.

“As a New Yorker,” he said, and Tony immediately put his hand down, “and as a magic user, I’m extremely glad that the Hague assigned Loki to the Avengers. As a group, we do the most good for the world, of course. But we’re also headquartered in New York, where Loki will be able to directly help many of the people he may have hurt when he was under Thanos’ influence.”

He took a deep breath and took a shot in the dark.

“And as my fiancé was saying a moment ago—”

The result was instantaneous. Camera flashes started to go off, reporters shouted ‘fiancé? Did he just say fiancé?’ between themselves before they erupted as one entity. 

“Doctor Strange, are you engaged to Tony Stark?”

“How long have you been engaged? Have you set a date for the wedding?”

“How does it feel to be marrying a fellow Avenger?”

“How does it feel to be marrying the world’s most eligible bachelor?”

“How does it feel to be an iconic LGBT couple?”

“Do you have any words of encouragement for members of the LGBT community?”

“How does Pepper Potts feel about this?”

“Doctor Strange, how did he propose?”

“…aaaaaand that’s all the time we have today, people,” Tony said with a smirk, standing up and motioning to the other Avengers that it was time to go. He grabbed Stephen’s hand and pressed a kiss to it while the other Avengers left, and the camera flashes almost blinded them. 

He waved to the press as they both walked off stage.

“Oh, Stranger Danger,” Tony said, laughing. “I didn’t think you had it in you.”

Stephen smiled and wrapped his arms around Tony’s waist. “I believe I’ve been fluent in smartass since long before you and I met.”

“Thank you, Stephen,” Thor said, putting a heavy hand on Stephen’s shoulder. “Once again, you’ve helped my family when you did not have to. You truly are my friend.”

Stephen smiled and tapped Thor’s hand, that was now trying to cut off his circulation. “Happy to help.”

“That was quick thinking, Doc,” Rhodey said, tapping him on the shoulder as he left. “It’s the end of the world, but Tony Stark is People’s Sexiest Man Alive.”

“Twice!” Tony said, giving Stephen a squeeze.

“Good going, Doc,” Natasha said. Clint nodded at him in approval.

Steve ambled over to Tony and thrust his hand out. “So? You’re getting married? Not just something to put the press off the scent?” He smiled as Tony reached out and shook his hand.

“We’re already married,” Tony said, one hand around Stephen, the other shaking Steve’s. “But yeah, when all this is over.”

“I’m happy for you, Tony,” Steve said. “Really.”

“Thanks, Steve,” Tony said. “We’d better get back down to the workshop. You guys get some rest, but be ready. We’re going to have to go as soon as this thing’s done, okay?”

“Yes, sir,” Natasha said sarcastically but she still left to go to the elevator that would take her to her room. Everyone else soon followed.

“Okay, everyone else, get to the—oof!” Tony was cut off as Peter dived at him, wrapping himself around him like a vine.

“Peter! Pete, can’t breathe, Pete,” Tony said, and Stephen went over and pried Peter off Tony gently. 

“Peter, what’s wrong?” Stephen asked.

Finally removing his mask, Peter’s face was red with tears. He looked between Tony and Stephen and sobbed, “I’m just so happy! We’re gonna be a real family!”

Tony smiled at Stephen over a sobbing Peter’s shoulder. Stephen grabbed Peter and held him close, Tony wrapping an arm around the both of them. They stood there just for a moment, incredibly grateful for the family they’d found.

Loud footsteps from behind were Stephen’s only warning before Thor wrapped his arms around all three of them, his hold snug but not too much. In fact, it was perfect, Stephen thought as he allowed himself to just enjoy it.

“Brother,” Thor said, and Stephen opened his eyes to see Loki standing a few feet away, arms crossed, and looking like a sulking child.

“Come on, Snowflake,” Tony said. “Every family needs that one weird uncle.”

“What?” Loki asked.

“You know. The weird uncle that stuffs the kid full of too much sugar and gets him inappropriate presents—like a kitten—and the kid loves him for it.”

Loki looked uncertain about his welcome, and it was probably because Peter looked uncertain about whether or not he wanted him there. No one tried to convince him, they just waited for a moment before Peter seemed to forgive Loki and accept him again.

Looking like he knew he didn’t belong there, Loki approached Peter slowly, like at any moment he might be turned away. Peter just wrapped himself around Loki and hugged him life his life depended on it.

“Don’t ever hurt my dad again, okay?” Peter asked.

Loki looked like he’d never been hugged before, like his arms didn’t know where to go. Slowly, he hugged Peter back. “Okay,” Loki said.

“Boss?” Friday said, and Stephen thought she almost sounded apologetic. “I hate to break this up, but Doctor Banner is requesting everyone join him in your workshop.”

Thor released them and they all scuffled away from each other. “Okay, we’ll be down in a minute,” Tony said.

“Doctor Banner is requesting _everyone_ go down to the workshop,” Friday said.

“What?” Tony said in disbelief. “No! They’ll touch my stuff. That’s my stuff.”

“Doctor Banner said it’s important,” Friday said.

“Ugh!” Tony grunted. “Fine,” he said, taking Stephen’s hand and trudging his way to the elevator. “No privacy at the end of the world.”

*

Wong, Scott, and Bruce were all assembled around Tony’s workbench, a blue hologram taking up an entire panel, floor to ceiling. Stephen saw a funnel connected by two flat membranes that fluctuated as numbers changed on the side. Not knowing the other two men very well, Stephen searched Wong’s face for clues. 

_Great idea_. The only person Stephen knew whose resting bitch face was stronger than his own was Wong’s.

“Please tell me we’ve had a breakthrough,” Tony said, as they all shuffled into the workshop. 

“Yeah, Friday said Yellowstone is more unstable by the minute,” Peter said, rubbing the back of his head.

Stephen quirked an eyebrow at Tony. “Yeah, that’s totally why,” Tony said.

“Boss, the other Avengers are in the elevator waiting for permission to enter,” Friday said.

“Temporary access granted,” Tony said with an exasperated grunt.

“Did you get it figured out?” Steve asked upon entering. The other Avengers were either taking in the workshop or looking at the hologram.

“Yeah,” Bruce said, wiping his glasses. “We got it working. We figured out how to create an inter-universal wormhole.”

Shouts of joy and relief went up, everyone relieved to hear the good news. The looks on Bruce, Wong, and Scott’s faces kept Stephen from rejoicing. As he looked across the room, he saw Loki had noticed it too.

“But?” Loki asked as soon as the cheering calmed down.

“But…” Bruce said, flipping the hologram so Tony could get a better look at it. The smile that had been on Tony’s face gradually slipped off the longer he looked at it.

Tony was silent for a moment before he ran a hand over his face. “You’re kidding, right?” he asked Bruce.

“No.”

“That—” he said, then turned around and buried his face in his hands. 

“Okay, what aren’t you telling us, Bruce?” Natasha asked.

“Right,” Bruce said. “So, we’re trying to create a wormhole to another universe, right? Well, to do that we need two things: stability and power.”

“The power is not the issue,” Wong said, pulling up the Power Stone and readings of the energy it was emitting even when not in use. “We have power enough to rival the sun.”

“You’re strangely familiar with how to use a hologram,” Tony said.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Wong asked with a glare. “Because I’m a librarian?”

“So we have power for days,” Bruce said. “What we don’t have is stability. An unstable wormhole will either collapse into a black hole or expand until it becomes a new universe and destroys everything around it. So, we need to balance the amount of energy the wormhole radiates.”

“Okay,” Tony said nodding, but the shakiness of his voice revealed how terrified he was. “But we need a gravity shield. Or else…” He manipulated the hologram so a dot started at one membrane, then entered the funnel, only to be stretched and disintegrated by the pressure of the wormhole. 

He tapped his chin, then spun around to face Stephen. “Wait…we might be trying to reinvent the wheel here. How did your portals shield you from the force of the wormhole?”

“The portal spell had a shield woven into it,” Wong said. “That spell was perfected by beings far greater than us. It made it so there was zero effect on the sorcerer casting the portal.”

“Okay!” Tony said, pointing at Wong. “So that’s what we need. A portal pillow!”

“No, we’re not calling it that,” Stephen said.

“Uh, yeah maybe ‘portal shield’ makes more sense. But, Tony, even if we had a portal shield, how would we install it on the other end of the portal?” Bruce asked. “Even if we were able to open the wormhole, how could someone survive the pressure of a black hole to get the shield to the other side?

“Because that’s literally what we need,” Bruce said and knew what he was asking for was impossible. “We need someone to go through a black hole and get this stabilizer on the other side so we can all pass through.”

Stephen lifted an eyebrow and saw Tony had the same thought he did. One by one the other Avengers all turned their heads toward Loki, who was sitting on a stool off to the side, playing with a hologram of the Tesseract. Thor crossed his arms, his expression murderous.

Scott looked between them, realizing there was something he wasn’t privy to.

“What?” Scott asked. “The Ant Suit can’t survive a black hole, I’ll tell you right now.”

Stephen sighed as Loki realized all eyes were on him.

Loki spun the hologram in his hands one more time before putting it down. Then he got to his feet, took a look around the room…

And smiled.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's Loki. 
> 
> I wanted to give every main character their own chapter to see what they were going through after the death of magic. Tony, Stephen, and Peter all got one, and this is intended to be Loki's. Thor's is next. Although, as always, he will share his with Loki.
> 
> I also hope this will continue to inspire @arbonne's Loki indoctrination. <3
> 
>  
> 
> I'll see you in a week, but you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com) if you'd like.


	26. Skywalker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left kudos or commented on the last chapter. It's so kind and I appreciate it so much that you all leave comments on every chapter and let me know what you liked about it. It keeps me going. And yes, in response to most of your comments, Loki really is a little shit. 
> 
> Also, thank you for the positive feedback because I really needed it this week. I was laid up with a six days fever. I had planned on getting ahead and staying ahead so I wouldn't need to take another break so soon, but alas.
> 
> The next chapter is still being written, so it will be going up in two Saturdays. I'm feeling much better now, but still on steroids and orders to rest. I'm basically Beth from Little Women. Hopefully I don't have to go out to the countryside to aid my delicate constitution. Thank you all so much for being so understanding.
> 
> glaucous_atlanticus again researched wormholes _again_ for this chapter. They are truly amazing!
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. You've betaed almost 200k words at this point. You're the best!

Stephen already knew how this was going to play out.

He considered just telling Loki to get it over with, that they really didn’t have time for whatever was going on in his head right now. To wipe the wretched grin from his face before the world exploded.

Then he remembered who he’d be talking to, and that trying to get Loki to not be a complete asshole whenever the situation presented itself was not only completely futile but was proven to be an exercise in butting one’s head against a very dense wall.

With a sigh, Stephen plopped himself down on a stool. He tried to muster the strength and will to get up and see if Tony or Bruce needed help, but the press conference and all the adrenaline that went with it had exhausted him. Five minutes, he told himself. For now, he decided to enjoy the show.

The air in the room was thick. Loki met Steve’s eyes and didn’t release them, just kept staring with that same devilish smirk on his face.

On one side of the hologram were Bruce, Thor, Peter, Stephen, and Tony. On the other were Steve’s group and Rhodey. Loki was in the middle. The blue of Tony’s hologram illuminated Loki’s face to something otherworldly, the smirk to something unnatural.

In all the fear and uncertainty, Thor came to stand in front of Loki, still dressed like the king he was, his expression murderous.

“Why are you all staring at my brother?” Thor asked.

Loki quirked an eyebrow and crossed his arms. “Yes, why are you staring at me?”

Steve shuffled his feet and looked around the room at the other Avengers. He finally settled on trying to get Tony’s attention, but Tony was already concentrating on the membranes in the hologram, changing the equations then shaking his head and changing them again.

“Look, Thor—” Steve started.

“Tony,” Stephen whispered, getting Tony’s attention.

That finally got Tony to look away from the screen. “Yeah, no,” Tony said, looking at the scene and seeing exactly what Stephen saw. “Hours, guys. Not days, definitely not weeks. I’m going to get the device to start scanning for the Reality Stone while you guys…” He looked over at Loki and made a gesture at the room. “Figure all this out.”

“Yup,” Bruce said, joining him.

“Stuart Little, you’re with us,” Tony said to Scott, waving him over.

Scott looked between Steve and Tony, obviously wanting to join the conversation, but thought better of going against Tony. Stephen just stayed in his chair and hoped this would be over soon.

“Thor said you fell into a wormhole and survived,” Steve said, his tone almost apologetic. “Can you do it again?”

“No,” Thor said, and at the same time Loki said, “Well, I don’t know. That was a long time ago. Maybe I’ve developed a phobia for wormholes. The last time I fell through one didn’t turn out very nice for me.”

Stephen threw his head back in exasperation and almost fell off his stool. A small but strong arm saved him. 

“Thank you, Peter,” Stephen whispered.

“Please be more careful,” Peter said, with fear in his eyes. Stephen scooted another stool closer to him and patted the seat. 

Some fears were hard to banish once they’d set in. He could only hope that this would go away once magic returned. Peter already had the burden of being Spiderman. He didn’t need to be constantly worrying about Stephen. Once Peter sat down, Stephen wrapped an arm around him, and didn’t let go.

“Okay, seriously though, can he even do this?” Rhodey asked. “Passing through a wormhole without being instantly crushed to death?”

“He can, but he will not,” Thor said.

Loki smirked at him, thoroughly loving stringing along the Avengers. “Long ago, your people called me Loki Skywalker. I know all the passageways through the Nine Realms.”

“Oh my God, the Skywalkers really are a disaster family,” Peter whispered. Stephen faked a cough to cover a laugh.

“So this should be nothing to you?” Natasha asked. “You could do it easily.”

Loki looked around the group of Avengers, some with looks of cautious optimism on their faces.

Stephen closed his eyes and counted to three…

“Yes, but of course that was long ago. Perhaps I’ve forgotten how to travel through wormholes.”

Stephen sighed and laid his head down on Peter’s shoulder. His nap really had been cut short.

“You held a black hole in your hand,” Steve said. “Wanda saw you. You held it in your hand like it was nothing. It didn’t hurt you at all.”

Loki tilted his head to the side and pretended to consider Steve’s words. “Yes, but that was just a tiny black hole. A black dot, if you will. So small, and you’re asking me to go into a Loki-sized hole.”

“You could do it!” Wanda said, approaching Loki with excitement. “If you could create a black hole and fall into one and survive, then you can do this. I know you can!”

Loki gave her an odd look, and Peter and Stephen shared one between themselves. 

“Thor,” Steve said, “if Loki’s the only one who can do this and come out unharmed on the other side—”

“He did not come out unharmed on the other side!” Thor shouted. Even without magic, Thor’s booming voice commanded the attention and silence of the entire room. He clenched his fist and, though he was facing Steve, checked for Loki out of the corner of his eyes.

Deliberately calming himself, Thor took a deep breath. “Loki suffered from a madness after he fell from the Bifrost. It wasn’t _only_ Thanos’ hand that forced him to commit the crimes you know him for. You cannot say that this would not hurt my brother further.”

Loki sighed and his shoulders fell. The absence of the smirk confirmed what Stephen knew. Of course Loki would do it. This was his world and his life too. “Thor…”

“No, Loki. I understand who you are now, brother, and I accept you,” Thor said, standing directly in front of Loki. His hand went around the back of Loki’s neck, and he brought their foreheads together. “But you cannot ask me to stand back and watch you do this. Not when you were so badly hurt the first time.”

“Thor,” Loki said softly, and his tone was more genuine than Stephen had ever heard it. “It wasn’t the wormhole that hurt me. You know this. It was what our father did. It was what Thanos did. If I were to do this now, we would know exactly where I would be going. Thanos would not find me.” He wrapped a hand around the back of Thor’s neck and took a deep breath. “But he is coming, Thor. When he comes for us—and he will—and we are without magic…”

Heavy tears fell onto Thor’s face. He gasped out a breath and hissed, “Then I will kill him with my bare hands.”

Loki smiled sadly and said, “And I’ll stab him with my dagger.”

Thor sobbed once before they released each other and shared some silent communication that only brothers could, though the meaning was obvious.

Stephen didn’t know exactly what had happened on their ship once Thanos had boarded. But he knew Thor had an advantage then that he didn’t have now. And if he was unable to stop Thanos then, he didn’t see a reason why that would change.

Thor tore himself away and started to pace the workshop.

“So will you?” Steve asked, every eye in the room once again on Loki.

Stephen groaned at the arrogant smirk that took over Loki’s face. “Thank you for your support,” Loki said. “But maybe I just don’t feel confident enough. Your press was just very mean to me. And Barton called me a monster.”

Stephen thought that Thor’s description of Loki was most apt: not a monster but a true pain in the ass.

“Well, now’s your chance to prove them wrong,” Steve said. “Prove that you’re worthy of being an Avenger.”

“Oh ho!” Tony laughed as he was still tweaking a formula in Bruce’s hologram. “That was the wrong thing to say, Cap.”

The mischievous grin that had graced Loki’s face melted off. Thor sighed and walked back toward the crowd.

“You think I care one whit what these people think of me?” Loki asked, his face now twisted into a sneer. “You think I have something to _prove_ to them? Barton is right. I’m not a hero, and I never will be.”

“Brother…” Thor said, coming to him and gripping his shoulder.

“No, Thor!” Loki shouted, tearing his arm away. “Barton is right! That man in the awful suit is right. They will never let me be another Loki.”

Even with his face wet from tears, Thor walked with a purpose, like he could not fail. He placed a heavy hand on Loki’s shoulder and said, “You say you are tired of running. I am too. And we’ve run out of places to run. There is nowhere where we could hide from this. We have to fix it.”

Loki frowned and gave Thor a look of disbelief.

“Are you actually saying I should go through the wormhole?”

“No,” Thor said, shaking his head. “You’re not getting near it. I will go.”

Loki scoffed. “You know nothing of the passageways between worlds. What to do if you get lost, or how to control your fall if something goes wrong. If anyone is to go, it will be me.”

Thor’s eyes welled with tears again, and he grabbed Loki in a fierce hug. “I thought I lost everything when Thanos attacked you. You are the only family I have left. I could not bear it if I were to lose you again.”

True to his word for once, Loki didn’t care that the Avengers were all standing around staring at them, that people who had once held him captive were surrounding him with looks of thinly veiled disbelief. He wrapped his arms around Thor and held on tight.

“You will not lose me, brother,” Loki said softly. “I’m not going anywhere. I am Loki…of New Asgard. Brother of Thor. My place is with you and with my people. And when I save this world…” he pulled back from Thor and gripped his face in his hands, “ _they will know who I am._ ”

Thor sobbed loudly and gripped Loki tighter. “I have always known who you are.”

“So does this mean he’s doing it?” Clint whispered. Natasha elbowed him but nodded. 

“I feel kinda sad for them, but also happy?” Peter whispered to Stephen. “Does that make sense?”

“Of course,” Stephen said. “We’re all capable of having many emotions at the same time.”

“Good, cause I also kinda want to get popcorn,” Peter said, looking a tiny bit ashamed. “You can’t pay for this level of drama.”

Stephen smiled and whispered, “Me too.”

“Okay, Friday, time to get this show on the other foot. Open up the big shiny,” Tony said, directing Stephen’s attention away from the brothers and back to where the actual important things were happening.

The brilliant purple glow of the Power Stone illuminated the room while Tony and Bruce were getting it situated into a complicated looking device.

“You got it, Friday?” Tony asked.

“Got it, boss. Ready when you are.”

“Activate ‘old man in the cave’ protocol,” Tony said. Nanoparticles formed around the Power Stone, the brilliant purple light faded until it was fully covered.

“The Power Stone is in place,” Bruce said, reading a steady stream of numbers as they flew past. “Readings are holding steady.”

Tony took a deep breath, made a sliding motion through the air, and opened a panel that revealed the Space Stone.

“Honey, Wong, can you come look at this?” Tony asked, not taking his eyes off the Space Stone. As though if he looked away it would come alive and open a wormhole underneath them. 

Stephen removed himself from Peter, who had curled around him, and walked over. On the hologram over Tony’s head were the wormhole metric equation. The diagram underneath showed a small dot passing through the funnel and coming out on the other side whole and unharmed.

“Take a look at the portal pillow,” Tony said. “How’d we do?”

“We’re still not calling it that,” Stephen said.

“There’s a familiarity with this,” Wong said, turning the funnel inside out, then right side up again. “This feels like the portal spells we use.”

“Awesome,” Tony said. “I just need to make it portable and durable so Loki can take it with him into the wormhole.”

“How long will it take to scan the other universes for the Reality Stone?” Stephen asked.

“Well, luckily, we know what kind of power the stones give off,” Tony said, typing out long equations that Stephen couldn’t keep up with. “And it’s not like they just up and left without leaving a trail behind.”

“Gamma radiation gives off a lot of power,” Bruce said, as he did the same.

“They might as well have left candies for us to follow,” Tony said. “It’s up and running now, and should give us a result soon. Then go over how this is all going to work and…Loki goes.”

“Right,” Steve said. “How long do we have?”

Tony looked over the hologram. “Two hours? Hopefully less. Go suit up.” Then he took a look at the group of people who had just come back together after being torn apart for so long.

He put his hands in his pockets and said, “I’m not gonna sugarcoat this. We’re literally going into another universe where we’ll have no idea what to expect. Our main objective is to get the Reality Stone, and get magic back before the world explodes.”

“You don’t need to tell us about the risks, Tony,” Steve said, but his tone was kind. “We’re all in this together.”

Tony nodded. “Barton, call your wife. Scott, call your kid. Just in case,” Tony said. “Peter, go tell your Aunt I need to talk to her. You’re coming with us.”

The Avengers all filed out of the room, except for Loki and Thor. Thor pulled out his phone from…somewhere in that impressive armor, but Loki had his eyes on Tony’s hologram.

“This is the device you’re going to use to stabilize the wormhole?” Loki asked.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “It’s almost ready. We’re just figuring out how to get it through the wormhole without being crushed.” He gestured to the hologram, showing lines curving through the funnel, but all of them having too much force. 

He sighed. “This was always going to be the hardest part. If it’s not perfectly adjusted, the wormhole could self-destruct. We’ve almost got it though. Just a few more—”

With one hand, Loki took the membrane Tony had been working with, twisted it, then shrank it. He wrote a few equations under it by hand, and watched as the hologram shifted to show a new route.

Then took a step back.

Tony looked on in horror. “Son of a bitch.”

At Tony’s exclamation, Bruce came over, took one look at the hologram, and shouted, “You mean, we could have had this done the entire time?”

“What did he do?” Wong asked.

“He fixed it,” Tony said, then gave Loki a glare. “ _The entire time_?”

“Well, no,” Loki said. “I had to feel like it first.”

“You’ve been sitting around for days sulking,” Tony said. “You know what’s been happening around the world, right? But you didn’t _feel like it_?”

“Well, I did now.” He turned around and smiled. “You’re welcome.”

Tony took a few steps towards him, but Stephen wrapped an arm around his waist to hold him back. “Whatever,” Tony said, but he kept his hand on Stephen’s. “I’m going to actually make the portal pillow—”

“Shield,” Bruce said.

“You guys go suit up,” Tony said, waving them off and releasing Stephen.

Bruce took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. “Actually, didn’t you say you had to talk to May?”

Tony didn’t stop working. Stephen crossed his arms because he wasn’t going to be the one to tell May they had to take her only family onto a world with an enemy that was known to travel with enormous _wolves_.

“Plus,” Bruce said, hesitantly. “That other thing.”

“What other—” Tony asked, then his head snapped up and he looked at Stephen.

Both Tony and Bruce were looking at him. He cocked an eyebrow in return.

Tony cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. He cast a sideways glance at Bruce, but Bruce just looked back at his screen.

“Hmm, no,” Stephen said, already irritated because something was being kept from him. “No help for you there.”

“Ooo. If I had magic I would summon a snack,” Loki said, sitting down.

“That’s really insensitive, Mr. Loki,” Peter said, frowning.

“Hey,” Tony said, gesturing towards the elevator. “Go get May. I’ll be up in a minute.”

Stephen waited until he heard the elevator doors close behind Peter, then said, “If _I_ had magic I would open up another portal under your feet.”

“Shh!” Thor shushed, and gestured to himself talking on the phone.

“Right,” Tony said, then turned to Bruce. “Take over? I’m gonna go talk to May and…stuff.”

“Am I ‘stuff’?” Stephen asked.

“Ha,” Tony said, but grabbed Stephen’s elbow and led him to the elevator. 

Tony asked Friday to take them up to their floor, where May and Peter would be waiting. Taking a deep breath, like he was trying to gather his courage, he took Stephen’s right hand in his. Gently, he traced the scars with a finger as the elevator seemed to go slower than normal.

Tony kissed Stephen’s hand and pressed his face against his palm.

“Tony…” Stephen whispered, because he didn’t think he could stand watching Tony torture himself over whatever it was he needed to say.

“I need you to stay here and monitor all the equipment,” Tony said, not making eye contact. 

_Ah_ , Stephen thought, while his heart plummeted to his feet. Of course. He wanted to protest, wanted to insist that he go with them, that he was an Avenger, too.

But…

“ _Liability_ ,” his traitorous mind whispered. He would be of no help on the field. The weapons he was adept at using that didn’t require magic would be of no help against the witchfinder wolves. If anything, he would only be something Peter and Tony had to worry about while they would be fighting for their lives. The best thing for everyone would be if he stayed behind.

He breathed through his nose, and closed his eyes. That was ok, he told himself. Today he was a liability, but tomorrow he wouldn’t be. Right now he might be a bit of a burden in a way, but tomorrow he would be a master of the mystic arts. All this was temporary.

“Right,” he said softly, grateful that Tony couldn’t feel his shame, his worthlessness, temporary though it was. “Makes perfect sense.” He cast a side glance at Tony, who was looking at him thoughtfully. “It’s fine. Truly. I get it.”

“No, I don’t think you do,” Tony said. “It’s not because you don’t have magic—”

“Of course it is,” Stephen snapped, then put a hand up to excuse himself. “It’s fine. I get it. I’m a liability on the field right now. It’s _fine_.”

“Uh, no,” Tony said, finally turning to him and taking his hands. “Clint’s a liability on the field. Is he going to be able to work with Loki? Is he going to aim for his neck the first chance he gets?” Tony exaggerated a shrug. “Who knows?

“I need you to stay behind because you actually know the physics behind the devices. And you understand the stones,” he said. “Between me, you, and Bruce…yeah, you are missing magic, but you’re the only other person I trust to be on this side of the wormhole.”

He wrapped an arm around Stephen’s waist and pulled him closer. “That’s the truth, Stephen.”

Without the bond giving him the easy answer, Stephen searched Tony’s eyes for the truth. A shaking hand traced the heavy bags under his eyes, while Stephen let himself just fall in. And just like he should have known, there was nothing but honestly, pride, and love.

Even without magic, he was still a sorcerer. He was still a doctor. 

And he was still a member of a family he was extremely fortunate to have found, damn it.

“Okay,” he said, and leaned in to kiss Tony just as the doors opened.

“Oh, um,” May said, nervously laughing as Tony and Stephen broke apart. “We can come back,” she said. Peter stood behind her awkwardly. “But Peter said it was important.” Her eyes were red and her hands shook as she ran them through her hair. She bit her lip and her voice broke as she said, “Something about the end of the world.”

“May…” Tony said, wrapping an arm around her and leading her to the dining room table. Peter turned back to Stephen with an apologetic look and followed them. Stephen heard their low voices talking and then a shout from May, but he wasn’t listening.

Instead of following them to the dining room, he turned and went the opposite way, and walked into a room that felt like a tomb. The carpet was soft under his feet as he walked into the living room, right up to the sunniest window, and looked down at the Cloak.

Seeing his friend’s lifeless body was too much for him, but he forced himself to not look away. It would all be over soon, he knew. This plan had to work, and then the Cloak would be back with him. 

_It had to work._

He checked the time, and realized that he should be getting back to the workshop. Every person that he would have to call was already in this building, and they’d be meeting down there.

And if this worked…

Sliding his hands underneath the soft red fabric was like grabbing a body. There was hardly any weight to the Cloak, but the comparison wouldn’t leave Stephen now that he’d thought it. He hated to disturb its resting place, but he knew that if magic was restored the first thing Stephen would want to see was the Cloak.

And the first thing he would feel was Tony. The little engine purring away behind his heart. He laid a hand on his chest and imagined he could feel it again.

He couldn’t wait. The bond’s absence had left an emptiness that was hard to ignore. 

_It’s coming back. All of it._

All this loss, all this emptiness would be gone soon. It had to.

As he walked to the elevator, he heard voices around a corner that did not belong to Tony and May.

“I know this courtship has been less than ideal from the start,” Thor said softly. “If things had been different, I would have hunted the greatest beast of this world and laid it at your feet.”

Pepper giggled. Actually giggled. 

Stephen smiled along with her.

“Or I would have bought you shoes,” Thor whispered. “I asked Tony for advice, and he said there are makers you favor.”

“You’re lovely,” she said, and Stephen could see the beautiful smile she was gifting Thor in his mind’s eye. “But I can buy my own shoes. Thor, I’m a lot easier than you might think,” Pepper said. There was the sound of fabric moving, like maybe they were holding each other. Stephen had to admit he was tempted to peek, but managed to restrain himself.

“And this might not have been ideal, but…I like you. I don’t know if there will ever be a time when things are calm, but…I’m willing to see where this goes. Are you?”

Thor sighed happily. “Yes. And when New Asgard is built, I will build you—”

Pepper must have put a hand on his arm because he stopped mid-sentence. “I like ballet. Most dance, really. Do your people enjoy the arts?”

Thor grunted but eventually said, “Yes. I will take you there, once they are ready.”

“I look forward to it. But for now, take care of yourself.” There was worry in her voice. Poor Pepper would be worried enough about Tony, and now it seemed like she was beginning to care for Thor too.

“I will,” Thor said, his voice even softer. “And I will see you again upon my return.”

“Can’t wait…”

And then there was the unmistakable sound of people kissing. Stephen stood there awkwardly, still needing to get down to the workshop, but mostly wishing he was anywhere but here.

“Will you come down with me?” Thor asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “Plus, I need to see Tony and Rhodey. They are absolutely not allowed to leave this universe without saying goodbye to me.” The elevator doors opened and closed.

Stephen sighed. He’d just take the next one.

*

Stephen carried the Cloak in both arms over to one of Tony’s older suits and spread it across the shoulders. It would be in sight of the bench he’d be working at so when the time came…

He bounced on the tips of his toes in anticipation. They could do this. They had to.

Scott, Bruce, and Tony were already here, creating a sort of protection tunnel out of nano particles that Loki would go through. Peter was wearing the Iron Spider and comforting May, who seemed to be just barely holding back tears. The rest of the Avengers were putting on suits that would provide breathable air and temperature control in whatever environment they’d land in.

“Okay,” Bruce said, then called Stephen over. “You’re familiar with all this. The only thing you have to do while we’re on the other side is work with Friday to monitor and maintain the energy levels. Friday’s set up to do a lot of this on her own, but someone needs to be here in case something goes wrong.”

“Something could go wrong?” May sobbed. 

“Well, um—” Bruce said.

“Nothing is going to go wrong, May,” Tony said, comforting her. “We’re just taking every precaution to make sure it absolutely doesn’t.”

She nodded but grabbed Peter around the shoulders and wouldn’t let him go.

“Okay,” Tony said, looking over the screens. “Loki, I think we’re ready for you.” 

Both Loki and Thor had changed into their battle leathers. The change in Loki’s demeanor was noticeable, the leathers looking far more like a second skin. Thor clapped a hand on Loki’s shoulder and grabbed him for one last hug. The force that pulled them together made Stephen wince. 

“I will see you soon, brother,” Loki said.

“We will fight side-by-side again,” Thor said with a sniffle. “As the Norns have always intended.”

“Okay, Snowflake,” Tony said, handing a small device that went over Loki’s hand like a large bracelet. “This is the portal pillow—”

“Shield,” Stephen and Bruce said as one.

“Once you’re on the other side, activate the device like this,” Tony said, showing Loki the buttons he’d push. “Leave it on the far side of the wormhole and then _this_ wormhole should look exactly like the ones Stephen makes on a daily basis.”

Loki took the device in his hand and placed it over his wrist. He flexed his fingers and seemed to contemplate it for a moment. Then he walked over to a corner of the room and pulled out his horned helmet.

Shoulders straight, head tossed back, he put it on and everyone saw the warrior prince he always had been.

Wolf whistles and catcalls came from various people in the room, a successful attempt at breaking the tension. Loki smirked and bowed his head a bit at the praise.

“You got this, Loki,” Steve said.

“Take care of yourself,” Rhodey said.

“Don’t fuck this up,” Clint said.

Stephen rolled his eyes, but Loki just smiled back.

“Power levels are stable,” Scott said, looking into a panel.

“We’re ready, Tony,” Bruce said.

“Right,” Tony said. “Here we go. Friday, activate the Space Stone.”

Blue light blinded Stephen for a moment as the stone activated at full power. 

“Friday, feed the coordinates into the device,” Tony said. 

The Stone surged with power, and Stephen wondered if Tony had accounted for the amount of power the Stone would be giving off.

“The device is ready, boss,” Friday said.

“Engage.”

A low rumble like the beginning of an explosion made Stephen’s teeth rattle, then the walls of the workshop shuddered. A beam of blinding bright light shot out of the device and onto the space where Loki stood. Stephen thought maybe they’d gotten the numbers wrong, maybe Stephen had done the math wrong, because it felt like the device was set to explode.

Then silence.

There, in the workshop, was nothing. In the space right before Loki, was _absolute nothingness._

A portal about the size to fit a grown person stood in the middle of Tony’s workshop, the space behind it fathomless.

Stephen moved so he could get a better look, but when he did, he realized he was looking at absolutely nothing. It was a void, deeper than his mind could comprehend. Something about it felt wrong, like it would lead his soul to hazard. After a moment, he looked away.

“Brother,” Thor said, giving Loki a nod. “I’ll see you soon.”

“You got this, Mr. Loki,” Peter said.

Loki turned to Stephen, to his family, looking far less certain than he had a moment ago.

“Hey,” Stephen said, getting Loki’s attention. “The Norns will be with you,” he said, trying to put his every good wish and any luck he had left onto him. “We’ll get it all back. All of it.”

Loki smiled—a genuine one—and nodded. He slowly walked towards the wormhole—the dark, empty, bottomless void. He put one foot in front of the other slowly, deliberately until he reached the precipice. 

Then he took a deep breath and stepped inside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have Loki no longer being a little shit. Wonders never cease. Next chapter will have _action_. 
> 
> I'll see you in two weeks, but you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com) if you'd like.


	27. Into The Breach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is now 200k! Which is kind of ridiculous, but that's okay. I'm long-winded. This story is in its last third, but we've still got a ways to go. Thanos is still coming...
> 
> Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter. I know this fic has had twists and turns and been hella angsty at times, so thank you for sticking with me. Your feedback keeps me going.
> 
> glaucous_atlanticus helped so much for this chapter. Writing action is not my strength, and they helped tremendously. 
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas. You two have now betaed over 200k words. You're the best!

The last bit of green from Loki’s cape disappeared into the wormhole before Tony realized he’d been holding his breath.

Stephen put a hand on his back, and Tony inhaled—loudly—and snapped back to himself. 

Right. Absolutely not time to panic or second-guess himself. Time to solidify plans, time to double check everyone had what they needed. Time to kiss Stephen goodbye.

_Step up, Stark!_

“Right. Okay,” he said, turning to the Avengers. 

All eyes turned to him. From one second to the next, Tony watched as people who a day ago hadn’t trusted him stood still to listen to his every word. Taking a deep breath, he focused on the pressure on his back and forced himself to focus.

But all he could think of as he looked at the assembled Avengers was how hard they’d worked to get to this point. All the science and tech and teamwork melding together to create something truly miraculous. 

And none of it would mean a damn thing if this team couldn’t work together.

The hand on his back pressed down, probably a little harder than it should.

Tony blinked and got his head back in the game. “Right. Like I said before, we don’t know exactly what we’re going to see when we get there. The beings in this universe might be—I don’t know—non-humanoid squid-people, and everything might be purple. We need to be prepared for anything.”

“The person you’re looking for is the Grand Imperator,” Stephen said, stepping up next to Tony. “He’s the leader of the Empirikul and a zealot. The last time I saw him, he was wearing all-white armor. He has the Reality Stone in a small white container that allows him to use it freely.”

“What’s to stop him from altering reality so we don’t exist?” Natasha asked. “Or making us just disappear?”

“Nothing," Thor said, adjusting Stormbreaker. May stifled a small sob and held on to Peter tighter. “Avoid a blast from the Reality Stone at all costs.”

Natasha lifted an eyebrow. “Got it.”

“Stark,” Wong said as he walked over to him. “I need a weapon.”

Stephen scoffed. “You are a weapon.”

Tony laughed before he could help himself. This was something he could do, something easy. “Then you’ve _really_ come to the right place. Friday, show Wong…everything. Let him have his pick.”

“You got it, boss,” Friday said. Wong followed the sound of a distant wall opening.

“So get the white thing out of his hand as quickly as possible?” Sam asked. “That’s the objective? Loki opens the portal, get the white thing out of this guy’s hand ASAP?”

“First objective,” Tony said, “yeah.” He turned around to see what he already knew. Loki hadn’t opened the portal yet.

“And what then?” Steve asked.

Tony only half-heard Steve, half his attention drawn to the emptiness of the wormhole and wondering why Loki hadn’t made his way back. Second-guessing every calculation, his mind spinning every detail to see what could have possibly gone wrong…

“After that, get the box to me, and I will use it to restore magic,” Thor said. “Magic must be restored as quickly as possible.”

Tony nodded his agreement. If he wasn’t in his suit, he’d be chewing his nails. “Friday, how’s Yellowstone doing?”

There was a pause before she answered. Tony knew it wasn’t a flaw in her code or because she needed time to research her response. She paused because she didn’t like what she had to say. “Eruption is imminent,” Friday said.

Tony exhaled and kept his eyes on the wormhole. This was cutting it down to the line.

“Any second now,” Stephen whispered in his ear. “He’s too stubborn to fail.”

Tony nodded and leaned into the distraction. “Stephen's staying on this side to monitor the other stones. We’re leaving the Space Stone and the Power Stone in his hands.”

Everyone nodded and grunted their agreement. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw May reach out and take Stephen’s hand. He had to force himself not to remind her not to squeeze too hard. 

_”You’re stressed, but don’t be that guy, Stark.”_

“Peter, you stay close to me,” Tony said. “You’re going to be using those spider legs. You’re on retrieval, got it?” 

Peter nodded and gave Tony a look so sincere and earnest for a moment Tony thought he was going to cry.

Wong came back with a sword that was almost as big as he was. And on his back was a very familiar axe, but not one that Tony had made or bought.

“You’re taking the axe?” Stephen asked. The look he gave Wong was somewhere between understanding and betrayal.

For the time ever, Wong looked uncertain. “Once magic is returned, the enchantments should return. It will become a magical weapon again,” Wong said. He looked over the axe, then again to Stephen. “But only with your permission.”

Planting a supportive hand on Stephen’s shoulder, Tony stood still beside him, silently supporting him. The axe would do no one any good in Tony’s workshop, but this was Stephen’s decision.

“Of course,” Stephen said, then clasped hands with Wong. “Use it well.” His hands shook as he ran a finger over the handle once, twice, then released it. 

Standing behind Stephen, Tony gestured to the axe. “Is this, like, a sacred weapon or something? Is there something you guys need to do so Wong could use it?”

Wong gave Tony a cold, dead stare, but Stephen quirked an eyebrow. “Just the standard bloodletting,” he said. Then he turned back to Wong. “Return it to me covered with the blood of the creature who did this to us.”

“Uh, wow,” Tony said. “That got a lot darker than I was expecting.”

Stephen leveled a glare at him.

“No, not at me!” Tony shouted, taking a playful step back. “Don’t give me your wizard glare.”

“Sorcerer,” Wong and Stephen said at the same time. 

Then Stephen smiled coyly. “This is the Axe of Angarruumus,” he said softly. “But right now, it’s just an axe, Tony. Be careful,” Stephen said to Wong.

Just as Tony was about to release a whole lot of nervous energy with a really out of place laugh, Scott showed up and bounced back at the sight of the axe.

“Whoa!” Scott turned to Wong and asked, “You’re coming? Are you going to able to fight without magic? With _that_?”

The look Wong leveled him with would have killed him if magic was still around.

“Yeah, okay, sorry,” Scott muttered.

“Large sword for killing large wolves,” Wong said, then sheathed the sword behind his back. “The axe, for my friend,” he nodded at Stephen. He then pulled a prototype repulsor-powered pistol from his tunic—one Tony thought of giving to Pepper for protection before realizing how terrible that idea would’ve been—and said, “And this because it makes me feel like Dirty Harry.”

“Whoa!” Scott said and ducked. Which was understandable because that was a really big fucking gun. Part of its design was intimidation. “You know how to use that, big guy?”

“Why would I not know how to use it? Because I’m a librarian?” 

“Okay, you can’t just say that for everything!” Scott said. “No one thinks you can’t do something because you’re a librarian!”

“Because I’m Tibetan then?”

Scott opened and closed his mouth, then turned red, shook his head, and just walked away.

“Please, please, Wong,” Tony said. “When this is all over, please tell me you’ll still come and stay on your joint floor.”

“No,” Wong said, and walked away.

“Okay,” Tony said, watching him go. Just as he was about to turn back to Stephen, the wormhole shimmered and seemed to _bend_ , suddenly becoming more dense and then the familiar gold sparks rounded the circle.

And then Loki appeared, a deep purple hue behind him.

“Loki!” Thor almost shouted as he ran to the portal. He grabbed Loki’s face in his hands, examining him for injuries but finding none. “You are well?”

“Yes, and I’ll remain well if you all listen to me,” he said, twisting out of Thor’s grip and turning to the assembled Avengers in front of him. “We aren’t too late to save the sorcerers of this world. They aren’t humanoid, and the All Speak will not help us here. But if we can move quickly to remove the Reality Stone from the Grand Imperator then we might be able to save this world and ours.”

Then he patted down his leathers, muttered, “I’m going to need more knives,” and walked over to Tony’s weapons area. The sound of a nervous Loki rummaging through his toy chest did nothing to bolster his confidence.

“What’s the situation over there? Is there anything else you can give us?” Natasha asked.

“Anything at all?” Sam asked. “Sit-rep.”

Loki nodded, then removed his horns and, tucking a knife into his belt, addressed the Avengers. “There’s a clearing where we can crawl to avoid detection. From there we’ll be able to see their small army before they order their wolves to destroy the sorcerers.”

“Got it. Achieve first objection as quickly as possible then,” Clint said. “Then move on to the second objective.”

“I…don’t know what you mean,” Loki said. “We must get the Reality Stone—”

“Away from that guy, yeah first objective,” Sam said. “Then one of us retrieves it.”

“Second objective,” Clint said.

“Then we get the Reality Stone to Thor so we can save magic,” Steve said.

“Third objective,” Clint said. “Not hard to understand. Let’s move.”

“Absolutely not!” Loki hissed. “You are to give the Stone to me and me alone. I’m the only one who understands magic, I’m the only one who can put it back together.”

“Loki…” Thor said.

“Shut up,” Tony said. “Both of you. You know what could happen. No squabbling. If Loki knows magic better, then it’s him. I don’t want to see any infighting out there. We have a universe to save.”

Tony sighed and rubbed his temples. There was no way this would work if they weren’t on the same page.

“Are we clear on what has to happen over there?” Tony asked. “Anyone have anything they want to say?”

“Yeah, does anyone else think it’s kinda cool that everything’s purple over there?” Peter asked, looking into the portal. “How’d you know, Mr. Stark?”

“I…I just know these things sometimes, Pete.” He turned to May and hugged her. “We gotta go. Stay with Stephen. Help him if you can.”

May sobbed in his arms hissed, “You bring him back to me, Tony.” She gripped the back of his neck desperately and moaned, “I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t,” he said, then held her again and let Peter say goodbye. 

Then the big one. The other Avengers walked one by one into the portal, until it was just him and Stephen left. There were no more words that needed to be said between them. Tony just walked right up to Stephen and kissed him. Like no one else was in the room, like no one existed in the world except for them. Tony wrapped one hand in the loose curls near the nape of Stephen’s neck and held on. With the other, he wrapped around Stephen’s body as much as could with no intent on letting go.

And with the kiss he poured as much of himself as he could. He didn’t have the bond to fall back on. With every touch of his lips he told Stephen that he loved him, that he’d go on loving him, that every good thing in his life was because of him. 

That they had to succeed, and that he couldn’t wait to feel that sweet little butterfly behind his heart, nervously, happily, fluttering away. 

He was getting their bond back today. And the Cloak too. 

“I promise,” Tony said. “All of it. It’s coming back. I swear it to you.”

“I believe you,” Stephen said, then kissed him one last time. “Now go. Save the world. Bring magic back.” He pressed his forehead against Tony’s and whispered, “Team Stark.”

Tony smiled back. “Team Strange.”

With one last look behind him, Tony put down his faceplate, and crossed over to the other universe. It was exactly like crossing Stephen’s portal, except for a weird crackling sound as he crossed the threshold. 

The air felt thicker. Darker. Instinct kicked in, and he immediately fell into a crouch. The clearing wasn’t very large, but the rest of the Avengers were already laying low behind a few large purple rocks, hiding from a dozen of the witchfinder wolves that paced a perimeter around beings dressed in white and red armor. 

“Friday?” Tony said softly. “Get samples of everything.”

A deep purple mist, denser than any he’d ever seen before drifted by. The mountains that surrounded them were a purple so dark they looked almost black, the faint light hitting the facets of the rock like diamonds. Tony couldn’t tell if it was the time of day or if this world was just dark, but even the color of the air was a dark purple.

He felt like he was in a Prince video.

Crawling on his elbows and knees, Tony made his way to the rocks with the other Avengers and peered over the side. There, surrounded by a dozen witchfinder wolves, was the Grand Imperator. The last time Tony had seen him had been for that one brief moment in the Crimson Dimension when he’d been trying to leave that cursed place as fast as he could. 

He’d been gone by the time Tony had arrived at Kamar-Taj.

“Boss, your heart rate just spiked,” Friday said softly.

Just the sight of him had Tony forcing himself to keep calm, to not fire the biggest missile he had at that son of a bitch, to not hit him and keep hitting him until he saw grey matter. He closed his eyes and thought of Stephen, of Earth, of the mission.

“That’s the target?” Natasha asked.

“Yeah,” Tony said, opening his eyes. “That’s him.”

He was just as big as he remembered. In one hand he held a long, pointed weapon, and in front of him were a dozen large, purple creatures kneeling on their…tentacles. 

Holy shit, the sorcerers of this world actually had tentacles. The smallest of them was tied up, with several others tied up behind it.

“Wow, you really know how to call ‘em,” Peter whispered. 

“Today is the day of your purification!” the Grand Imperator shouted. “Your world has been tainted by magic, but we have come with the cure.”

“This guy sounds like this street preacher I avoid on the subway, Mr. Stark,” Peter whispered.

There were unintelligible shouts from the tentacle creatures, who struggled within their bindings. With a grandiose gesture, the Grand Imperator made a show of pulling something from within his armor.

He thrust his hand up into the air, holding the white box that held the Reality Stone. 

“Okay,” Tony said quietly. “We need to get that away from him before he can use it.” For just a split-second Tony ran different scenarios through his head, trying to figure out the best way to take the Reality Stone and get it into Thor or Loki’s hands.

Peter had the Iron Spider, so he’d be able to retrieve it quickly but getting over there and dodging everything that would impede him would be tricky. Using Sam might be a good idea, but then there was also the Vision…

“Target acquired,” Clint muttered, then stood up, took aim, and fired.

It happened so quickly Tony didn’t have time to stop it. Watching the arrow fly through the air was like watching all the struggle he, Stephen, Bruce, and Thor had gone through go up in smoke. He saw the Earth dying, saw Yellowstone erupt, Venice fall into the sea, bridges and cities crumble…

Saw the arrow Clint had just fired cause such a big explosion that the Reality Stone was knocked out of the Grand Imperator’s hand.

“First objective achieved,” Clint said. 

“Okay, Spiderman, you’re on retrieval,” Steve said, instantly making the call. “Sam, you’re air support. Get him in, get him out. Scott, you go with them. Don’t go Giant unless you absolutely have to.”

“Got it,” Scott said, making himself small and hopping on Sam.

“Wanda, Vision, Thor, Wong, and I will handle the wolves,” Steve said. “We keep them away from the other teams. Rhodey, you go free the prisoners.”

“On it,” Rhodey said, flying off.

“Tony, Natasha, Loki,” Steve said, finally turning to them. 

Tony’s eyes met Steve’s and just like that, they were back. 

“Tony?” Natasha asked, and Tony realized he’d got stuck for half a second too long.

“Stark?” Loki asked.

“Yeah,” Tony said, shaking himself. “I’m good. I’m great. Call it, Cap.”

Steve nodded, then jutted his chin towards the Imperator. “You three go hand-to-hand. Keep him from getting the Stone.”

“There!” the Imperator shouted and pointed at them. “On the rocks!”

“Clint,” Steve said as the witchfinder wolves began to growl. “You stay here. Be our eyes.”

“You got it, Cap,” Clint said, and pulled out another arrow.

Tony grabbed Natasha and Loki by their collars just as one of the wolves leapt for them, flying fifty feet in the air in the two seconds it took for the wolf to jump. 

Red mist flashed a deeper blood color in all the dark purple. Wanda trapped a wolf in it before it could leap to tear Sam and Peter apart. The steady yellow beam of the Mind Stone barreled into the wolf as it thrashed in Wanda’s trap.

Tony didn’t stop to see what happened next. He dropped Natasha and Loki and fired a repulsor beam directly at the Grand Imperator’s head.

HIs head snapped back like Tony had just slapped him bare fisted. Then he turned back, the inhuman, soulless gaze of his helmet drawing a chill down Tony’s spine.

“Didn’t I already dispose of your kind?” the Imperator asked. He threw a punch so fast there was no time for Tony to dodge it. He twisted his upper body, put up his forearm, and braced himself.

Loki caught the fist before it could make contact. 

“I assure you, you haven’t met my kind yet.” With a twist of his fist, the armor began to bend in Loki’s hand. “If you had, you’d remember.”

The Widow’s Bite hummed in Tony’s ear. The Grand Imperator’s soldiers were closing in on Natasha. Tony fired his repulsor blasts, knocking them off their feet, continuously firing at the soldiers as they approached.

One by one they all got back to their feet. Their armor wasn’t even scorched.

“Cap, these guys have almost impenetrable armor,” Tony said. Time to change tactics. He broke out his nano particle sword and shield and threw all his weight into each swing.

“Their armor is similar to the scales on the wolves,” Friday said. “It’s denser and tougher than any material I’ve ever seen before.”

“Great!” Tony shouted, twisting his shield and hitting another soldier as hard as he could. The guy just got back up again. 

Beside him, Natasha locked her legs around the neck of another soldier, crushing him with enough force to snap a man’s neck. But she couldn’t make a dent through his armor. With a struggle, she flipped him off his feet, and Tony blasted him with a repulsor beam.

“Friday, can you find any weakness in their armor?”

“Analyzing,” she said. The HUD lit up as she went through every inch of it and found nothing, no weaknesses, nothing that could be exploited. Not even an obvious way to get the armor off.

Even the wolves had soft underbellies. This armor had nothing.

“Peter?” Tony shouted, because if he was having a hard time keeping his feet, he could only imagine how Peter was doing.

“I’m okay, Dad!” Peter shouted as he was picked up by Sam and taken high into the air, wolves snapping at him as they flew past. 

An unhinged roar tore through the battle. Thor, covered head to toe in blood, screaming in rage as he swung over and over at every wolf he came across. Wanda and Vision teamed up and trapped a wolf, managing to tear into its thick scales before it burst free again. It twisted in its red prison, but Wanda wasn’t able to hold it long enough for the Vision to kill it. Wong had more than honored his promise to Stephen. The axe was covered in blood and gore. 

“Sit-rep,” Steve shouted into his mic. “Where are we on objectives?”

“I need help getting these guys loose,” Rhodey said. “Whatever they’ve used to trap them isn’t breaking easily.”

There was some chittering over the coms before Rhodey said, “I’m trying to help you, yes. Please stop struggling!”

“Who has eyes on the Stone?” Steve asked.

“Me,” Clint said from the ridge. “It’s a little too close to Loki and the big guy for my liking.”

Panting on his knees, Loki used his own horns to knock the Grand Imperator off his feet and onto his back. From his battle leathers, he pulled a large staff and struck him as hard as he could. 

The force of the blow finally made a dent in his helmet.

“Okay, I’m going in with Spiderman,” Sam said. “We’re gonna make a pass for the Stone.”

“We’ll cover you,” Steve said, pushing back a wolf with his shield when he saw Sam diving with Peter in tow.

Loki slammed the base of his staff over the Grand Imperator’s face, grinding it into his helmet, forcing him down into the deep purple dust. While Tony and Natasha fought to keep back more soldiers coming to their leader’s aid, Loki twisted the staff as hard as he could. 

“Look at me,” Loki hissed, his knuckles white around the staff. “I am Loki of Asgard.” He twisted the staff deeper, the sound of armor creaking and tearing rending the air. “You will not defeat me.”

There was the unmistakable sound of speed. Tony saw Sam make the dive with Peter. Every Empirikul soldier saw them as well. With a well-aimed butt to the head, the Grand Imperator threw off Loki and took aim at Sam. 

“Get it, kid!” Sam shouted.

“I got it!” Peter shouted, grabbing the Reality Stone in his hands…and promptly dropping it. “Oh, wait! I don’t got it!” 

“Karen!” Tony said, fighting for every inch of space he could give Sam and Peter to grab the Stone and fly away.

“Oh, wait, Karen’s got it!” Peter shouted as Sam took to the air again, the Reality Stone grabbed by one of the Iron Spider’s legs.

“Woo!” Sam shouted as he took to the air.

“Secondary objective achieved,” Clint said. Tony took a split second to look into the sky and paid for it with a knock on the head. “Moving onto third objective. Uh…”

“What’s the matter, Clint?” Steve asked, beneath a wolf with only his shield to protect him.

“Looks like both the Odinson boys are a little busy right now.”

Throwing off one of the soldiers, Tony was able to steal a glance at Thor. He was covered in the blood of wolves and using brute strength and not magic to propel himself into the air before driving Stormbreaker into another wolf’s head.

On the rocky ground to Tony’s right, Loki was still struggling with the Grand Imperator, all hands on Loki’s staff, both of them trying to drive it into the neck of the other.

“Clint, cover me,” Tony said, thrusting his nano shield into the face of a soldier. “I’m gonna try to get Loki clear.”

Tony dodged and weaved, then just kept punching to get to Loki. He landed a well-placed upper cut on a soldier, and Clint fired two arrows at soldiers behind him. There was just enough space for Tony to get a good momentum and drive his shield into the back of the Grand Imperator.

A scream tore out of him before he fell over and away from Loki.

“Sam, Loki’s clear,” Clint said. “Push for third objective.”

“We’re gonna have to do this quick, kid,” Sam said.

“Yes, sir, Mr. Falcon, sir!”

Taking up his shield with one hand and the repulsor beam with the other, Tony didn’t let up. He didn’t let the Grand Imperator take a breath, just kept hitting over and over, anything to let Loki get up and into position to get the Reality Stone.

“You’d better be ready, Loki!” Sam shouted as he began his dive. Tony forced himself to ignore the sky where his kid was descending with the Reality Stone in hand, about to be in the center of a battlefield. Instead he kept punching, kept hitting, couldn’t stop punching, couldn’t stop…

_Step up, Stark!_

“Tony!” Natasha shouted just before she was swarmed by soldiers. 

“Friday!” Tony shouted, and missiles fired from within his armor to the soldiers, stopping them in their tracks. 

But just barely, only enough to throw them off of her. In the meantime, Tony lost sight of the Grand Imperator.

“No,” he whispered. Sam and Peter were diving with the Reality Stone, Loki was completely clear to receive it, but the Grand Imperator was about to fire his weapon.

Tony punched another soldier and threw him off, then another, and another. He couldn’t get his head above water long enough to help Loki stay clear. Out of the corner of his eye, the Grand Imperator walked up to Loki, who took up his staff and the fight began again.

Except Sam and Peter were still coming with the stone.

“Steve!” Tony shouted. “Rhodey! Wanda! We need to get Loki clear! Now!” he shouted, watching as Sam almost seemed to be diving in slow motion as the Grand Imperator and Loki fought hand-to-hand.

It was too late. Sam was swinging down with Peter, ready to hand off the Reality Stone, but Loki couldn’t retrieve it, his hands too busy trying to wring the Grand Imperator’s neck. 

Tony blasted a repulsor beam that seemed to annoy him, but did nothing.

Then an arrow came from the ridge and was caught by the Grand Imperator in one hand.

He tossed it away before it exploded. “Your technology is useless against our own,” the Grand Imperator said. “We have long since abandoned magic and embraced science and science alone. This primitive technology is nothing compared to—”

He cut off as three more arrows landed in his armor.

And exploded.

The blast from the explosion was just enough to throw him off of Loki just as Sam was flying by.

“Give it to him, kid,” Sam said as they flew by, dropping the Reality Stone off with Loki and taking off again. 

“No!” the Grand Imperator shouted when he realized what Loki had in his hand. “That is not for you, abomination!”

Tony and Natasha played defense, keeping everyone away from Loki for as long as possible. 

Loki held up the Reality Stone and smiled. “Such a little thing,” Loki said, gazing at the white box that held the Stone. “For an abomination like me to hold.”

“Loki, do it!” Tony shouted, using his shield to try to stop the Grand Imperator in his tracks. 

“Yes,” Loki whispered, holding the box up. “All of it. All of its glory, all of its sins. The Halls of Valhalla, the Gates of Hel, and every parlor trick in between.”

He closed his eyes, opened the box, and said, “ _All_.”

*

“How’s it looking, Friday?” Stephen asked, keeping his eyes on the seismic activity at Yellowstone.

“Eruption imminent,” Friday said. “Once it begins…”

_Once it begins, it’s the end of most of North America._

“You—You don’t need to say it,” Stephen said, putting his hands in his pockets and closing his eyes. He knew the bond didn’t exist right now, but he couldn’t help but think that he should somehow be able to feel what was going on with Tony. That the love they shared should be enough for him to know what was happening.

He closed his eyes. Tried to reach out for Tony, for the little engine that hid behind his heart.

_Nothing_.

“And the fight?” he asked.

Friday was quiet for a moment, then said, “They’ve achieved the first two objectives.”

Stephen nodded. “But?”

“But they can’t get Loki clear to get the Reality Stone to him.”

Stephen grunted and snuck a glance at the Cloak. If he were there, he’d be able to portal himself to Loki or portal Loki to him. Or the Cloak could sneak the Stone over or Wong could or…

But then, if any of those things were possible, they wouldn’t be in this situation. 

May was sitting at the little table in the corner, praying. Pepper and Bruce left to help coordinate aid and rescue for the western United States… Stephen was essentially alone.

He snuck a peak out of the corner of his eye, bouncing on his toes and wringing his hands in anticipation and mortal fear. Either everything was going to be okay or they were all going to die. There was no in between. 

His hands were shaking worse than usual, and he knew exactly why. Sitting by the sidelines and watching while his bondmate and their kid went off to battle sat wrong with him. His insides were _aching_ to join the fight, to fight side by side with the love of his life. 

But instead he was here with Friday and the bots and—

A bright light flashed before his eyes, and Stephen fell to his knees. He struggled to take a breath, air coming in with a loud gasp as he tried to pull himself back up. The air around him was thick, his mind hazy as he tried to understand what had just happened.

“Stephen?” May said, shaking him. “Oh my God, Stephen. Are you okay?”

Stephen couldn’t take a breath, couldn’t force air inside, where there was something warm building. His chest felt like it was on fire, like it might explode, like a pressure was building up. 

He took a deep inhale, both his hands coming to grip his chest as he felt the little engine—Tony—sputter to life once again behind his heart. The heavy pressure went away and in its place was a lightness that Stephen feared he’d never feel again.

“Oh,” Stephen breathed, smiling and running his hands over his chest. “Oh, yes. Oh, Tony.”

He took a deep breath and realized it had been days since he’d taken a proper one. His heart felt lighter, the heaviness that had been sitting on his shoulders was gone. And Tony… His perfect, sweet Tony…

Was back.

The little engine purred behind his heart, like it had never left.

“Stephen?” May cried, her face streaked with tears. “What’s happening? Are you okay?”

“Oh, yeah,” Stephen said, hands on his chest. “I’m more than okay. I’m—”

Out of the corner of his eye, Stephen saw movement. He turned to where his eyes had been drawn to all evening, then stopped.

Slowly, the red fabric of the Cloak began to sort itself, like it was disoriented and needed a moment before it could come back to the world. Holding his breath, Stephen remained absolutely still—not even chancing a blink—as the life came back to the Cloak.

And after a moment, the longest damn moment of Stephen’s life, the Cloak hovered on its own, taking its shape again. It looked confused, like it had no idea where it was or what had happened.

But the Cloak was moving on its own. The Cloak was _alive_! It had come back to him.

Stephen choked out a sob before he could help himself. Thick, heavy tears fell onto his face as he saw his best friend come back to life and notice him. His face hurt with how broad he was smiling.

The Cloak zipped over to him, holding Stephen’s face with its lapels, trying to dry his tears. 

Stephen just grabbed it, held it in his arms, and didn’t let go. The ancient smell of the library and the musty scent of the Sanctum invaded his scenes, and Stephen sobbed in his friend’s body.

Wrapping his arms around Cloak was like hugging himself, but he didn’t give a damn. 

“By the Vishanti, I missed you, my friend,” Stephen sobbed. “You have no idea.”

The Cloak nodded its lapels and embraced Stephen even harder, wrapping him completely in its folds, making Stephen feel warm again when he’d been so cold.

“I’m sorry,” Stephen muttered, unsure what he was apologizing for but knowing he’d made mistakes that led to the Cloak’s death. “I’m so sorry.”

The Cloak shook its collar and sat itself on Stephen’s shoulders. Then it levitated and started taking Stephen over to the portal.

“What?” Stephen asked, struggling in its grip. “No, Cloak, you have no idea what’s going on. I’m supposed to stay on this side of the portal to keep everything stable.”

A thought occurred to him that should have been one of his first.

“Friday? Yellowstone?” he asked.

“Stabilizing,” Friday said. “Eruption no longer imminent. I take it magic is back?”

“Yes, thank the Vishanti,” Stephen muttered. The Cloak again started to bring Stephen towards the portal. “No, put me down. I have to stay and—”

The Cloak twirled around Stephen and he was dressed in his tunic and trousers, Loki’s vambraces and his gloves on his forearms and hands, the feel of the sling ring in his pocket.

“Seriously?” Stephen cried out. “Have you always been able to do that?”

The Cloak looked sheepish, as far as fabric could.

The call to battle was difficult to ignore. He knew that the job Tony had given him was real. Keeping an eye on two Infinity Stones was a difficult task. If anyone were to attack the Compound while the rest of the Avengers were away, it would be up to Stephen and Stephen alone to defend them.

“Stephen,” May said. “I’m here. I can stay and look after everything down here.”

“May…” Stephen said, not wanting to doubt May, but also knowing that there was little May could do if something terrible actually happened.

“I can protect the Compound, too, Doctor Strange,” Friday said. “Boss needs your help.”

“Does he?” Stephen asked, mostly to himself. He reached down into the bond, and felt Tony’s fear, his terror, and desperation.

The call was impossible to ignore, not when his family was fighting without him.

But he wasn’t a liability in battle anymore. He was a master of the mystic arts, and a defender of this reality.

And he had a family to protect.

Sensing his mind was made up, the Cloak carried him towards the portal. With one last look back at the workshop, Stephen prayed he was making the right decision for Tony and Peter and for magic.

*

Tony staggered in a breath and clutched his chest as the wave of light hit him like a monster wolf. For a split-second his thoughts left the battle. That was enough time for one of the Empirikul soldiers to get in a sucker punch. Tony fell to his knees, distracted by the sudden arrival of _Stephen_.

He could feel Stephen again.

He was there. The little butterfly fluttering behind his heart. Like it had never left, like it belonged there.

He was back. Magic was back, his plan had worked, and everything would be okay.

“Mine now,” Loki whispered and out of the corner of Tony’s eye, he saw the Reality Stone disappear into Loki’s hand.

A shout from the other side of the battlefield tore across the sky as lightning screamed and plunged down, incinerating a witchfinder wolf upon impact.

Another punch was coming for Tony, but a green mist surrounded him, giving him time to get to his feet.

“Thanks, Snowflake,” Tony said, honestly surprised by how friendly Loki’s magic felt. “Welcome back.”

“Third objective achieved,” Clint said. “Okay, let’s pack it up.”

“Negative, Hawkeye,” Steve said. “Eliminate the threat. These guys almost destroyed the Earth.”

“No one said anything about a fourth objective, but fine,” Clint whined. “Looks like Thor has it well in hand.”

Another wolf fell to Thor’s rage and lightning.

White armor was suddenly enveloped in green mist, and the armor melted off the Empirikul soldiers, and Tony was finally able to get the upper hand.

“Where’s the main guy?” Rhodey asked. “Where’d he go?”

“Good question,” Tony said, looking around but unable to see him.

“I’ll find him,” Clint said. “You guys finish this up. I want to get home in time for supper.” An arrow went through the neck of an armorless soldier. “I thought this was supposed to be hard?”

Catching his breath, Tony struggling but got to his feet. Looking out for a moment onto the battlefield, he saw something he'd thought impossible.

All the backstabbing and betrayal, all the lies, all faded away. They were a team again. A well-oiled machine that moved beautifully with all its mismatched parts. He’d forgotten what it was like to not have to do _everything_. That a team worked best when everyone had a job to do.

Oh God, he was part of a team again.

Or maybe not _again_ , Tony thought. Maybe they’d never been a team like they were right now. With all the bad blood finally hashed out and put to rest, maybe they had a chance to be the team they’d always wanted to be. 

“You need a nap, Stark?” Clint asked.

Tony was about to make a quip about how it must have been nice staying on a cliff just watching the action for the entire battle, but stopped at the sound of a deep boom that didn’t come from Thor.

The light shifted.

Dark purple clouds parted, a ship ripping through the atmosphere to hover over them.

“You infected are all the same,” the Inquisitor said from high atop a cliff. “Leave even a single one of you alive, and the infection spreads like a virus.

“Surrender the Stone!” he shouted. His helmet was off, revealing an unnaturally white face and black, fathomless eyes. “Or face your death.”

Raising his shield, Tony centered himself and prepared for the onslaught. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw lightning dance in the air, saw deep red mist mix with green.

And from behind him, he heard the sound of someone coming through the portal.

“Doctor Dad has entered the game,” whispered Peter.

Tony took to the air, lifted his sword, and smiled.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cloak is back! I missed writing it so much, and the next chapter is going to be much easier to write because of it. Speaking of next chapters, the next one will be posted in two weeks. I find action extremely difficult to write, so I will be taking my time on this. Plus, the holidays are coming and there's so much to do. Thank you for sticking with me and this story. 
> 
> I'll see you in two weeks, but you can find me on [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com) if you'd like.
> 
> p.s. The Purple Dimension is canon, y'all.


	28. Red Right Hand

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Working title for this chapter was My Boyfriend's Back (Hey la day da)
> 
> Happy Holidays to everyone! Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter! The Cloak and magic which means huzzah I get to write them again! There's lots of Cloak and lots of fun spells and alliteration.
> 
> Thank you to glaucous_atlanticus who is an excellent beta as always. Thank you to turtle_abyss for grammar betaing this chapter and also foxglove_fiction for stepping up when google docs was being a fucking asshole. You're the best.

There was a small heap of incinerated wolves at the bottom of a sparkling purple mountain. The sharp whoosh that Captain America’s shield made as it flew past was nearly drowned out by the sound of lightning striking and a monstrous howl of pain.

Red mist fully engulfed a wolf and stopped it before it could leap. The unmistakable magenta bands of the Shackles of Sheol bound a wolf just long enough for Wong to plant the Axe of Angarruumus in its head.

In all the chaos and violence, Stephen scanned the battlefield for red and gold and blue.

He finally found Tony, fighting hand-to-hand with Empirikul soldiers, the unibeam drawing his eye like a beacon. The soldiers weren’t wearing their armor, and blood splattered on Tony’s faceplate as he fought.

There was a swift movement to Stephen’s left. One of the wolves broke through the perimeter and leapt straight for Tony.

Where an hour ago Stephen would have felt powerlessness and fear, he now felt magic sing in his veins and power prickle at the ends of his fingers. Without a second thought, Stephen conjured the Demons of Denak and sent them towards the wolf before it could reach Tony.

Twisted, shadowless demons erupted from the ground, grabbing the wolf with unnatural groaning and black claws wrapped around its body before opening the ground and pulling it beneath the surface.

Barton spun around, an arrow in his bow ready to go off. When he saw, Stephen he looked relieved.

“Hey, Stark,” he said, “your boyfriend’s back.”

_Joy_

_Relief_

_Hope_

Tony jammed his nano shield into a soldier’s head, turned around and said, “Hey, honey,” before a sharp spike of fear ripped through him.

“Cap, we got incoming,” he said, then took to the sky with his shield and sword.

“Holy shit,” Clint muttered.

“By the Norns,” Loki whispered.

“Are we just gonna ignore the demons that Doctor Dad made come out of the ground and eat that wolf?” Peter asked.

“Yup,” Tony said, staring past him. Stephen quickly turned around. A horde of witchfinder wolves were stampeding out of the ship and running towards them.

Their long, backwards-jointed legs allowed them to advance in leaps and bounds. There were dozens of them, against a small team of superpowered individuals…

And Hawkeye.

“Barton, get behind me,” Stephen said. The sound of Tony’s repulsor boots touching down behind Stephen filled him with a thrill even in the face of death. 

“Everyone come closer!” Stephen shouted across the comms. “Thor, bring Loki over here.”

“That might be a bit difficult, Strange,” Loki said. “I believe my brother has gone into a rage.”

Sure enough, another flash of lightning incinerated the last of the wolves that had been there when Stephen arrived.

“Wong,” Stephen said, “I have an idea, but it’s gonna have to be quick.” 

Peter landed next to Tony, but the team was still divided. Natasha and Loki made their way over, but Sam was still in the air and Rhodey was trying to free… 

Stephen squinted. “Are the sorcerers of this world squids?”

“Strange,” Loki said, his eyes on the advancing wolves, “if you have a plan, now is the time to act.”

The wolves were advancing and Stephen had no choice but to begin the spell.

“Now, Wong,” he said softly, concentrating.

Even the burning in his hands felt more alive, felt like he was hurting but the pain was accomplishing something. He was helping his universe, helping so many other universes, helping his new team, helping his old one.

He completed the final movement and a black sphere erupted all around them, protecting them from anything that might try to harm them. Across the field, Wong created another that protected everyone else on the ground. The Sorcerer’s Sphere would protect them for enough time for them to formulate an actual plan. Something that didn’t just involve hiding.

The wolves must have reached them by now, but the Sphere was completely black and any noise outside was silenced. The deception allowed them a moment to rest and gather their strength. 

“I hate to say it, Cap,” Sam said, hovering with Scott on his shoulder in midair, “but we might need to abandon ship.”

There was silence for a moment while Stephen thought that over. The Earth was safe again, magic was back. The Reality Stone was no longer a threat, they could go home.

But he couldn’t just allow the Grand Imperator to continue his slaughter. Not when there was a chance he could do something about it.

“As long as the Empirikul are left unchecked, magic users in every universe are at risk of extermination,” he said. 

“He’s extremely long-lived,” Loki said. “I heard tales of these beasts when I was a child. If we don’t stop them now, there’s no telling how long they can continue.”

“We can’t allow that to happen,” Stephen said. “Even if you don’t give a damn about magic users, the last thing our own universe needs is chaos in another.”

Tony’s helmet retreated into his suit. A bright smile was shining on his face and his eyes looked far happier than they should given the situation.

“I completely agree,” he said. Then he gave Stephen a gentle kiss. “Fancy seeing you here. I thought you were watching the Stones.”

“Friday’s on Stone-sitting duty,” Stephen said. “Glad I’m back?”

Tony’s smile only got wider. “You never left. Unlike this one.” Tony petted the Cloak and said, “Hey, Red. I missed you.”

The Cloak left Stephen’s shoulders for a moment to wrap around Tony and then Peter.

“This is all extremely touching, but we’re in a fucking bubble with a hundred monsters swarming outside,” Clint said. “How are we getting out of this?”

“Strange is right,” Steve said over the comms. “We have to finish what we started. Otherwise, they’ll just follow us back to Earth. Even without the Reality Stone, they’re a threat.”

“We need to take down the ship,” Natasha said, wiping blood from her mouth. “Thor’s our heaviest hitter.”

There was silence for a beat, then Loki said, “Brother, are you alright?”

“I am fine,” Thor said, annoyed. “I am perfectly capable of—”

The silence of the Sphere was broken, the black rounded walls splintering and breaking apart and sending everyone inside flying. Stephen was blasted into the rocky wall of the mountain, the Cloak only partially able to cushion his impact.

Pain erupted all along his back and head. He cracked open his eyes enough to see Tony whisk Clint and Peter into the air, and Sam airlift Natasha. Loki was holding his own against the wolves, but there were too many of them. It was only a matter of time before he fell.

Gravel crunched in front of him. The Grand Imperator stood there, the fathomless black of his eyes and unnatural paleness of his skin still as unsettling as the first time he saw him.

“Stephen, I’m coming back for you,” Tony said, breathless. “I'm trying to find a safe place to drop Peter and Clint. Just hang on.”

But this time he wasn’t alone.

“Abomination,” the Imperator said, walking towards Stephen. “Did you really think we had only one weapon?” He raised his cannon into the air, a deep black coloring it from the inside out. “We have been fighting and killing your kind for millennia. You think we are not prepared to destroy you?” 

The Cloak took Stephen to the air. He stifled a groan of pain, but made the gestures for the Shield of the Seraphim.

Colorless lips twisted in a crazed grin. “You think your insignificant shields can stop me? After all this—”

A flash of red and gold streaked by, knocking the Grand Imperator into the mountainside and putting an end to his prattling.

“And that’s what you get for monologuing!” Peter shouted from a cliff.

The Grand Imperator’s head slammed against the mountain, hard rock cracking and falling onto his head. 

“That was for my husband,” Tony said, panting. He lifted the Imperator over his head and slammed him again into the mountain. “And that…was for my husband’s Cloak.”

The Cloak ruffled itself in joy, and Stephen smiled through the pain. Before he could voice his appreciation, green mist grew and then formed a circle as Loki finally stopped fighting and cast a shield to protect himself.

“Cap, you got a plan yet?” Sam asked. “Because I think Loki needs help.”

With a fierce grunt, Thor said, “Wong, let me out. My brother needs me.”

“Wait just a minute, Thor. Scott, I think it might be time for Giant Man,” Steve said.

“Yeah, I think you’re right,” Scott said, still perched on Sam’s shoulder. “Anyone have a fruit cup?”

“No, and please wait until you’re off me before you go big,” Sam said.

Loki was attempting to twist a wolf inside out with one hand and cast his shield with the other. The shield wasn’t looking too good. 

“You guys better decide soon,” Clint said from the safety of the mountain.

“Thor, I’ll help Loki,” Stephen said. “You get to that ship. The rest of us will fend off the wolves.”

“You sure you’re up for that, Strange?” Steve asked.

Concentrating, Stephen set his hands for the spell, and split himself into a dozen identical copies. Each of his copies cast a red whip around one wolf, dragging it to the ground and flipping it over to its back.

“Tony?” 

Tony quickly flew over and drove his nano sword into the wolf’s soft underbelly.

One down.

“Yeah,” Sam said, “he can handle it.”

“Let me out, Wong!” Thor screamed. “I must fight at my brother’s side.”

“Thor, you idiot,” Loki said, panting. “Get to that ship with Stormbreaker. The faster we take it down, the faster this is over.”

The black sphere faded and the Avengers leapt into action.

So did the squid people. Their tentacles rippled and shimmered as they traveled along the ground, tripping up and wrapping themselves around the wolves before dragging them down.

“Whoa,” Rhodey said. “I did not expect to see that today.”

“Can you do that, Doctor Dad?” Peter asked.

Stephen spared a glance, deeply impressed. “Nope. Two arms, two legs,” Stephen said, “but I can do this.” He released the Flames of the Faltine—the burning, dancing fire consuming the wolves as it incinerated all the flesh it touched.

“We sure Thor is our heaviest hitter?” Sam asked.

The witty response died on Stephen’s tongue. Loki’s shield finally failed, and he was too far away for the Cloak to get Stephen to him in time. He couldn’t look away as a wolf opened its mouth—

“Gotcha!” shouted Scott, grabbing the wolf around its belly and saving Loki at the absolute last second. “Okay, what do I do with it now? I already tried just throwing it on the ground, and that didn’t work. So what—Oh my God, it’s biting my finger! _It’s biting my finger!_ ”

“Hold it out towards me, Scott,” Sam shouted. Scott obeyed, and Sam stabbed the wolf in the belly with the sharp tips of his wings. “ _Now_ throw it on the ground.”

Stephen conjured his own shield, but red mist beat him to Loki as Wanda touched down next to him. She threw up her own shield to protect the both of them. 

Hands on his knees, panting, Loki looked up and nodded. Over the sound of snarling and screaming, Stephen and Wanda’s eyes met. Wordlessly, the three of them agreed to stand together, back-to-back. Team Magic.

Team Magic attacked.

Stephen cast the Sapphire Bands of Storaan, which shone brightly in the purple of the air as they wrapped around one of the wolves and bound it to the ground. 

“Wong!” Stephen shouted across the field. “The axe, please?”

The whoosh of the Axe of Angarruumus was loud in Stephen’s ears, but he didn’t even attempt to catch it. Not when the Cloak could. It flared out in front of him, catching the axe only an inch away from Stephen’s head.

He didn’t flinch. 

Stephen again silently thanked Loki for the vambraces, planted the axe deep into the belly of the wolf, and moved on to the next.

“Wanda, what are you doing?” Loki asked, still winded from almost being overrun.

Stephen heard the confusion in her voice. “Fighting?” she said.

“You have a great amount of power at your disposal,” Loki said, casting a spell that twisted the neck of a wolf until it cracked. “Your power comes from the Mind Stone. You should be able to do far more than…” 

Wanda twisted a wolf around in her red mist, and pummeled its belly with blasts that tore it open.

“There’s more power there, you just have to access it,” Loki said. 

“Uh, Loki, is this something you should be addressing now?” Tony asked. “Maybe you guys can train together later? You know, when we’re not being attacked by giant wolf monsters?”

“Nonsense, the perfect time to train is exactly when you’re being attacked by giant wolf monsters,” Loki said. Then he turned to Stephen. “Cast a shield for us for a moment, would you?”

And then he took Wanda aside and just _stopped fighting_.

“What the hell, Loki?” Stephen shouted and cast the Seven Rings of Raggadorr. Seven blue energy rings sprung up all around the three of them and defended them from the wolves. But they wouldn’t hold them off forever. 

“Brother, what are you doing?” Thor asked. Stephen could hear the sound of lightning in the distance as Thor continued his attack on the main ship.

“What is necessary,” Loki said. “Wanda, I want you to close your eyes and concentrate on your magical core. The place inside you where magic lives.”

“Here?” Wanda shouted. “Now?”

“If I’m right, there’s reserves inside of you that you haven’t dreamed of,” Loki said.

_Fear_

_Terror_

_Panic_

Without saying a word, Stephen sent a feeling of calm, of protection to Tony through their bond. His fear of Wanda would probably never completely go away, and there was no point in telling Tony what he already knew on a public channel. But Stephen could comfort him in the most intimate of ways, in a way no one else could know.

“Thanks, honey,” Tony said. Then—not caring that everyone else was listening—said, “I love you.”

Exertion prevented Stephen from answering verbally. Sweat poured down his brow, his head and back throbbed, and the Cloak had to help keep his arms up. He was exhausted, but he could hear Loki giving instruction to Wanda that sounded similar to his lessons from the Ancient One. 

And as much as Wanda was still a wild card in Stephen’s eyes, if she was willing to listen to instruction…

From Loki.

_From Loki._

“Wait,” Stephen said, alarmed. “What are you telling her?” 

“Do you feel it?” Loki asked Wanda.

“Yes! I can feel it! It’s so much.”

“Excellent,” Loki said. “Now on the count of three, Strange will drop the shield, and you do as I’ve said. Are you ready?”

“No!” Stephen shouted. “No, _I’m_ not ready. What are you two doing?”

“One, two, three,” Loki said in quick succession.

Stephen rolled his eyes, but dropped the shield and cast the Demons of Denak, hoping Peter wasn’t within eyeshot so he didn’t have to witness more demons coming out of the ground to drag the wolves to a hell dimension.

Red mist grew out of the corner of his eye, larger than it had been before. Wanda trapped a wolf, and twisted her hands like she would dig into the creature herself. 

“You can do it, Wanda,” Loki said. “Concentrate!”

With a deep shout, Wanda pulled her hands apart, and the wolf trapped in her mist was eviscerated, torn in half. The Cloak managed to spare Stephen from most of the carnage that should have hit him, but Stephen still felt the spray of blood and gore in his hair.

“Holy shit!” Peter shouted from a high place.

“Language!” Stephen shouted.

“Looks like we’re gonna have to have a contest for heaviest hitter,” Scott said. “But it’s not gonna be me cause I need to be small again. Sam…a little help.”

“I got you, Tonka truck,” Sam said, catching Scott as he went back to normal size.

Wanda turned around and looked at Stephen, her hands covered in the red mist and a happy smile on her face. She looked like she wanted Stephen’s approval.

“Good job?” Stephen said, then turned back to the wolves. Red mist grew again and again blood and gore went flying, this time hitting Stephen in the face. “Gave up, did you?” he asked the Cloak and then conjured the Shackles of Sheol again.

“Steve, I’m going to go help Thor with the ship,” Tony said, red and gold streaking through the sky. “It’ll be just like in New York.”

“I’m unsure how much help you will be, Tony,” Thor said as he called another lightning strike. “This armor is similar to that of their soldiers’ armor and the wolves’ scales. Very hard to penetrate.”

There were a few chuckles over the sounds of exertion over the comms.

“Well, Thor,” Tony said, “let me tell you the story of Jonah and the Whale.”

And then Tony broke through the front of the ship and set off rockets from the inside. With the size of the ship, it wasn’t quite enough to take it down. But it would damage whatever was still inside trying to come out to fight.

“Thor,” Loki grunted, using a long knife to gut a wolf. “You’re not using your greatest weapon.”

Thor gave an earth-shattering shout and drove lightning into the ship again.

“I assure you, I am, brother.”

“The Bifrost,” Loki said.

“Oh…” Thor said, and paused in the air on the battlefield. “Is that even possible in this universe? Could the Bifrost transcend spacetime and reach us here?”

“Call it,” Loki said, cutting down another wolf. “And we shall see.”

“What happens if he can’t call it?” Steve asked.

“Oh, probably nothing,” Loki said. “It just won’t come. Of course, it’s always possible that, since it’s a wormhole, it might break the spacetime continuum, but that was bound to happen at some point.”

“Maybe we fight without breaking the spacetime continuum?” Peter asked.

“It’ll be fine,” Loki said. “We’ll just put it back together.”

A mighty shout and then a pure beam of white light ascended into the air, the deep purple of the clouds and sky breaking. An unmistakable rainbow of light came crashing out of the sky, plunging into the ship. 

Fire erupted and explosions sounded as the ship began to slowly break in half.

“See?” Loki said. “Nothing broken but the ship. You’re welcome.”

“Great job, Thor,” Steve said. “Now let’s finish up, so we can head home.”

The hoard of wolves seemed smaller now, more manageable, something that Stephen just had to get through. He, Loki, and Wanda fought like a well-oiled machine. Like they’d been fighting together for years. 

“You guys holding up okay? Thor and I are just taking care of the stragglers,” Tony said.

“Everyone looks good from up here,” Clint said.

“What do your hawk eyes see, Hawkeye?” Peter said.

“Kid, I swear—wait a minute,” Clint said, his tone going from exasperated to cautious in a moment. “The main guy. Creepy black eyes guy. He’s gone. He’s not where Tony left him.”

Stephen looked over to where the Grand Imperator had lain when Tony had slammed him into the mountain. He was gone, only the broken rocks left to say he’d been there.

“Barton, do you see him?” Stephen asked, looking frantically.

“No!” Clint shouted. “I don’t see him any—”

A deep boom sounded, then the sound of breaking rocks. Stephen looked up in horror and saw the base of the mountain crumble. A terrible crack sounded and rocks began to fall on top of the entire mountain base.

Gold, green, and red shields were conjured in an instant, but Stephen still felt the impact as rocks fell overhead and stayed there. 

“Wong!” he shouted over the sound of falling rock.

“I’m here, Stephen!” Wong shouted back. “I have Rogers and Romanoff!”

Cries of the airborne Avengers all blended together in his ear. He strained against the weight of the rocks as they kept falling.

“Peter?” he managed to whisper. Peter had been at the top of the mountain.

“I’m—ah! I’m okay, Doctor Dad!” Peter shouted over the rest. “I’m just—trying to find the ground.”

The _thwip_ of his web sounded clear to Stephen, even over the shouts of Thor calling for Loki, of the Vision calling for Wanda, of all the Avengers reaching out to each other.

Stephen heard the web, and he heard Tony.

“Stephen! Baby, can you hear me?”

“Yes,” he said, grunting. “I don’t know how long I can hold this.” He gritted his teeth and dug deep for any last bit of strength that remained.

“It’s okay,” Tony said, his voice shaking and his fear obvious to Stephen through the bond, but he still tried to keep Stephen calm. “There’s only six of you in two different spots. We can dig you out. Just stay calm.”

Sweat poured down Stephen’s brow like bullets. The Cloak wiped it for him, but it was little comfort. He’d already been exhausted by the battle. He didn’t know how long he could hold a literal mountain over his head.

“The last of the wolves has fallen,” Thor said. “Brother, I am coming for you.”

“For the love of Odin,” Loki hissed, “do not add more weight to this mountain, Thor. I will stab you in your sleep.”

In all the noise of rocks shifting and falling, Stephen heard the sound of boots crunching on gravel. He strained himself to open his eyes…

The Grand Imperator approached them. A deep gash was torn on his head, black blood running down his white face. His breathing was loud and labored, his steps just slightly uneven. A pale white shield covered him from head to toe, displacing rocks as he walked.

“Do you see now, abomination?” he said to Stephen. “Magic is nothing in the face of science. All of your attempts at destroying the might of the Empirikul have been futile. I will leave this place and rebuild. But you…” He raised his weapon at Stephen, Wanda, and Loki. “You will die here, and your impurity with you.”

Repulsor blasts sounded overhead. _Tony_ , Stephen thought. Tony coming for him. But it wouldn’t be quick enough. The whine of the Imperator’s weapon hurt Stephen’s ears as he searched for a spell, any spell, but knew it was pointless. If any one of them stopped casting their shields for even a second, the entire mountain would crash down on them.

There was nothing he could do. The Axe of Angarruumus lay at his feet, Stephen unable to wield it. 

He wanted to tell Tony he was sorry. To tell Peter that he loved him, and he was so glad he got to be a father to him, even if it was only for a little while. He wanted to tell Tony that loving him had been the best part of his life.

“Stephen!” Tony screamed down the comm so loud Stephen could hear a faint echo through the rock. “You son of a bitch, I’ll kill you if you touch him!”

“Tony…” Stephen managed to whispered through gritted teeth and sweat. The Imperator lifted his weapon, fully charged, and aimed.

With almost no strength left, Stephen rubbed his nose along the edge of the Cloak, thanking it for its friendship and loyalty. The Cloak wiped his brow, gave a gentle flick to his cheeks, and swept off his shoulders.

Then it picked up the Axe of Angarruumus, and sliced the Grand Imperator’s head right off.

Stephen gasped in shock and relief, and Tony must have felt it through the bond because he shouted in Stephen’s ear, “What? What just happened? Stephen, are you okay?”

“Oh, Cloak,” Stephen whispered, still exhausted and holding up the mountain. “My dearest friend. Thank you.”

The Cloak wrapped itself around Stephen once, then lifted its edges to the rock and helped alleviate some of the weight on Stephen’s shields.

“You really are an amazing piece of fabric,” Loki said, panting. “Still not too late to dye you green.”

The Cloak completely ignored him, and just kept on holding on to Stephen.

“Brother!” they heard down the comms, just as purple light shined into the hole the three of them were in. Rocks were cleared away and Thor’s terrified, bloodied face peaked through. “Oh, you’re alive!”

“Yes, but I won’t be if you don’t get these rocks off me, you dolt!”

Repulsor blasts cleared away more rocks and then Stephen saw Tony peek through as well.

“Hey, honey,” he said, then cleared the rest of the debris away until Wanda, Loki, and Stephen could all lower their shields.

“Oh, my God,” Tony said, wrapping himself around Stephen, completely ignoring the blood and gore. “Oh baby, I thought I was going to lose you. After everything, I thought I’d lose you anyway.”

Stephen closed his eyes and all but fell into Tony’s arms. The Cloak hugged the both of them too.

“What happened down here?” Tony asked, then finally took in the state of him. “Oh wow, you’re gross.”

“The Cloak,” Wanda said. “It saved us.” She pointed to the headless body of the Grand Imperator and the Axe that had done the deed. “We’d be dead without it.” Then she looked at the Cloak, not seeming to understand exactly where she should look, but still said, “Thank you.”

The Cloak waved its lapels in acceptance.

“And Peter?” Stephen asked.

“I’m here, Doctor Dad!” Peter shouted from the top of the hole. “Do you need help getting out?”

“No, I think I’ve got it,” Stephen said. The Cloak levitated him out, Tony flying at his side. Thor grabbed Loki, and Wanda got out on her own power.

Rhodey and Sam had already freed Wong, Steve, and Natasha.

Stephen wrapped himself around Tony, then opened his arms to receive Peter. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to just appreciate this moment. His family was all there, together, and in his arms.

The Cloak wrapped around the three of them, and Stephen amended the thought. 

In his arms and on his back as well.

Large arms then embraced the three of them, lifting them all an inch above the ground.

“Beautifully done, my friends! Truly a battle worth remembering!” Thor exclaimed, then pulled in an exhausted looking Loki.

Stephen smiled and looked around. Everyone was embracing, checking each other’s wounds, confirming for themselves that everyone was alive and well.

“Great work, Doctor Strange,” Captain Rogers said, shaking his hand. “Glad to have you back.”

“Good work, Doc,” Natasha said, then looked at the Cloak. “You, too.”

“Yeah, you guys are badass,” Scott said, clutching his bleeding hand. “No wonder you tried to stay hidden all this time.”

“Is the Cloak a person?” Steve whispered to Tony, Stephen just barely able to hear. “Does it have to sign the Accords?”

“I…don’t think we need to go that far, but yeah it’s its own person,” Tony said.

Steve took off his helmet and approached Stephen again. This time he addressed the Cloak. “Thank you. If you hadn’t acted as quickly as you did, we wouldn’t have survived.”

The Cloak flapped its lapels in happy acceptance.

A purple tentacle reached out and tapped Stephen’s shoulder. The squid people lined up behind their leader, each of them only going up to Stephen’s hip. They all raised their tentacles and then touched them to their beaks.

“Um…” Tony said.

“I think they’re thanking us,” Stephen said, and raised one hand and nodded. The rest of the Avengers did the same, and the squid people seemed to accept that as a gesture of acknowledgement. 

They turned as a group, chittering amongst themselves, and left.

“They’ve got the right idea,” Natasha said. “I could definitely go for a bath right about now.”

“And a beer,” said Rhodey. “And about three hamburgers.”

“Oh, fuck,” Clint said from the top of the cliff. Or what was now the top, what with everything being covered in debris. “The portal’s gone! Fuck!”

The portal and the device that stabilized it was gone. The device Tony had created was undoubtedly smashed underneath all the rocks.

“What does this mean?” Steve asked Tony. “Are we going to be able to access the device from this side?”

“Not if the portal pillow was destroyed when the mountain fell!” Tony yelled. “We gotta find it. Maybe we can repair it. Oh, God, we cannot stay here.”

“No, we can’t,” Stephen said, raising his hands. “Purple really washes you out.” Then he began the spell to open a portal home. He mentally shrugged and blamed Tony forgetting whose magic inspired his tech on panic and exhaustion, but still enjoyed the look on his face when his portal opened right into Tony’s workshop.

A kaleidoscope of blue butterflies erupted from his hands as the strong but harmless spell was completed.

“Peter?” May cried on the other side. 

“Oh, I’m here, May!” Peter said, then walked through. 

One by one the Avengers patted Stephen on the shoulder in thanks and walked through the portal. When Wong walked through, he gave Stephen a knowing smile.

When it was just Stephen and Tony left, he turned around to make sure Tony wasn’t going to try to salvage too much of the Empirikul technology. 

Instead he found him wrangling up his butterflies. 

“Come on, guys, we gotta get you home,” he said, waving his arms around and trying to guide them through the portal. “I got a nice place all set up for you, but you gotta come with me.”

His throat burned and his heart ached in his chest for how much he loved Tony. Watching him chase his butterflies like a boy was one of the most wondrous things he’d ever seen. He took a mental picture, and knew he’d revisit this memory a thousand times in the years to come.

“Come on,” Stephen said, and the butterflies flew ahead of them. 

“Oh, now you help,” Tony said with a smile, holding Stephen’s hand and walking through the portal.

“Eww, they’re in my hair!” Loki shouted. “Strange! They’re in my hair!”

Completely ignoring Loki, Stephen closed the portal and exhaled. He was completely exhausted, covered in blood, and happier than he thought he could be. 

“Come on guys, leave him alone,” Tony said, brushing the butterflies out of Loki’s hair. “Plus, there’s enough grease in there to weigh your wings down.”

“Oh, ha ha ha, Stark,” Loki said, brushing himself off. “I’m covered in wolf blood and yet my hair feels more filthy.”

“Good job, everyone,” Steve said. “I think we should all head to the med bay, just to be careful.”

“The only place I’m heading is the shower,” Stephen said. “I don’t suppose you could help?” he asked the Cloak. The Cloak responded by clearing some gunk out of his eye. “Thanks.”

Like a Disney prince, Tony was now completely surrounded by butterflies. One landed on his shoulder and another his chest. “Honey, your head. You took a pretty hard hit.”

Stephen blinked, but far stranger things had happened to Tony than butterflies. “My head is fine,” Stephen said, wanting nothing more than a shower. “Doctor, remember? I’d know.”

“No concussion, boss,” Friday confirmed.

Tony looked like he wanted to protest, then took another look at Stephen. “Okay. I’ll be up in a few minutes, okay?”

“Please tell me there’s enough hot water for all of us,” Natasha said.

Stephen shrugged and opened a portal straight to his and Tony’s bathroom. “I have no idea.”

He walked through to a chorus of groans and ‘oh that’s how it is’ thrown at him. At this point, he didn’t care. He let the Cloak help him undress, stepped into a steaming hot shower, and breathed.

Magic was back. 

The bond was back. He’d known it would be, that when a spell said _forever_ , it meant forever. But a part of him had been frightened. Now, standing there scrubbing the blood out of his hair, he felt Tony’s relief, his peace, his joy. All of it was within him, the little engine humming behind his heart, an unending constant.

He scrubbed until the water ran clean, then stood there for another five minutes just because he could. The Vishanti only knew how much peace he would get after he stepped out. 

The world was still in shambles. Kamar-Taj had been discovered, the UN was involved, and Loki was teaching Wanda magic. 

And Thanos was coming.

Stephen exhaled and focused on the hot water soothing his aching muscles. There would be time enough for that later. Now, all he wanted was Tony and their bed.

He finally dragged himself out of the shower and put on soft clothes to sleep. Tony wasn’t back yet, so Stephen walked out of the room and over to the balcony that overlooked the honeysuckle.

Leaning over the railing, Stephen saw Tony guiding his blue butterflies to the shrubs. He put his hands on his hips, and waved his hand around, gesturing to the rose bushes and sunflowers. 

Stephen didn’t think it was possible, but somehow watching Tony care for his butterflies—the physical evidence of his magic—made him love him even more. He smiled, the beauty of the moment—the impossibility of Tony Stark—leaving him weak in the knees and hopelessly in love.

Tony must have felt Stephen’s surge of affection. He looked up from the butterflies, smiled and waved.

His throat tight, his heart overwhelmed, Stephen lifted a hand and waved back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to call this chapter Red Right Lapel but that would have given away the ending. 
> 
> The idea of Tony giving Stephen's butterflies their own area comes from amethyst-noir. I love her Tony and Stephen so much.
> 
> For now I'm going to stick with the updating every two weeks schedule. When the holidays are over I might try going back to once a week, but that schedule is also responsible for getting me sick so we'll see. My goal is to have this fic completely finished by May, which will mean it took a year to write.
> 
> Thank you all so much! If you enjoyed the chapter please let me know.


	29. Inconceivable

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented on the last chapter! I'm so glad you all had a good time with all the action scenes. That's something I was concerned about, so it was great seeing some positive feedback. Thank you!
> 
> And yeah, the Cloak should come with a warning label. It's a total badass and we know it's killed for Stephen before...
> 
> Thank you to glaucous_atlanticus who is an excellent beta as always. If this chapter is funny it's because he contributed lines. Thank you, my friend. This chapter is not betaed for grammar, so all grammar mistakes are my own.
> 
> Only warning for this chapter will be from glaucous_atlanticus: you could fossilize butterflies in all this sap.

Stephen lingered on the edge of sleep.

He’d been drifting for a while now, exhausted and needing a good healing sleep. But there was something stopping him. He nestled deeper into the pillows and tried to ignore whatever it was. 

The Cloak swaddled him just a little tighter. It was so warm where Stephen had been so cold while it was gone. Tony had done his best, and he gave Stephen a different kind of comfort, but there was nothing like being wrapped in the warmth of his best friend. 

And the Cloak loved Tony too, which made everything…

Stephen’s eyes snapped open. He woke up completely, realizing what was wrong.

“Tony?” he whispered, rolling closer to the other side of the bed…

The Cloak had to catch him before he fell off. 

“Hmph,” Stephen grunted, then flopped back onto the pillows. “Tony?” he called out, thinking maybe he was in the bathroom. 

“Boss hasn’t come upstairs yet, Doctor Strange,” Friday said. 

Frowning, Stephen struggled to get out of the Cloak’s clutches so he could sit up properly. “Leggo,” he grunted, then shook his shoulders. “I missed you, too, but I need to get up.”

The Cloak gave him one last embrace, then let Stephen get up and out of bed.

“Where’s Tony?” he asked Friday.

“His workshop.”

Stephen rubbed the back of his head and moaned. He really wanted to sleep, but as much as he needed it, Tony needed it far more. Ever since the destruction of magic—no, since they’d discovered the plan to destroy magic—Tony had been going nonstop. He hadn’t a decent night’s sleep since…

Since the first and only night they spent together in this bed.

Well, that was just ridiculous. The part of him that would always be a doctor was aghast at the idea, mentally reviewing all the damage Tony was doing to himself with the lack of rest and stress. He tapped his lips in thought, seriously tempted to just open up a portal and drop Tony into bed.

Stephen sighed. Tempted, yes, but that was something he would never do.

Watching him exhaust himself was frustrating to witness, but then he knew exactly why Tony was pushing himself so hard. 

Thanos.

His head throbbed. Stephen grunted and prepared himself for the Battle of the Blankets when all he wanted to do was curl up and sleep.

He’d sleep when Tony slept. So.

First things first. Acquire Tony. Get Tony to bed, get Tony to sleep, get rid of headache, kill Thanos. Good plan. He might be missing a few steps, but there was nothing else he could worry about right now.

His muscles ached and his head throbbed, but Stephen made it all the way down to Tony’s lab without the Cloak having to carry him once. He considered this an enormous success. He’d take any win he could get. He was unsure how this next fight was going to go.

Walking into Tony’s workshop was like walking into a war room. There were a dozen different screens floating around him. On one screen someone who looked very familiar to Stephen was talking to Tony with a sour expression on his face. On another was a physics equation that Stephen couldn’t recognize at this angle, but looked similar to what they had recently been working on. There were floating star charts and a screen with a talking head giving out the headlines with a news ticker on the bottom. And—most importantly—while all of this was going on, Tony was wearing a gauntlet.

The containment box for the Power Stone was on Tony’s workbench, and Stephen didn’t know what to think.

“Look, Mr. Secretary General,” Tony said to the man who had looked familiar to Stephen. His voice was gruff and he was speaking just a little slower than usual. “I don’t know when the Avengers are going to be up for infrastructure building.” He put a hand, the one that wasn’t gloved, and said, “I’m not saying that rebuilding after all this isn’t extremely important, but you have to remember—”

“The Boogey Man is coming,” the Secretary General said, exasperated. “Yes, you’ve said. But even if he is coming—”

“Oh, he’s coming,” Tony said frantically. “How short is your memory? Remember Wakanda? Those were his ships! We’ve got everything he wants. And he’s gonna have to go through us to get it. As much as I want to help Marrakech, we need to look at the bigger picture.”

Stephen had heard enough. 

Apparently it wasn’t enough that Tony had created devices that had saved their entire universe, the powers that be still wanted more. 

Stephen quickly entered the shot behind Tony. “Good afternoon, Mr. Secretary General,” Stephen said with a very false smile.

“It’s three o’ clock in the morning, Doctor Strange,” the Secretary said.

Stephen sighed. “Yes, and Mr. Stark has an urgent meeting to get to. Thank you and goodnight.”

Friday, bless her heart, cut the feed.

“Ugh, I know I should be angry because that was an important call, but thank you so much, Doc,” Tony said, resting his head against Stephen’s chest. The Cloak reached out and pulled the two of them together, letting them rest in each other’s arms while it cuddled them close.

“If that hadn’t worked I was willing to pretend we couldn’t hear him.”

“It was a video call, Stephen.”

“I can make it snow.”

Tony pulled away slowly, a sleepy but lovely smile on his face. Then something seemed to occur to him and he snapped away, pulling back completely and reaching out to his holograms.

“Back to work. Thanos is coming. Step up, Stark,” he muttered.

Tony worked like a man possessed. Stephen had a hard time keeping up with which screen Tony had his attention on, he moved so fast, hardly waiting for results before moving onto the next.

_Fear_

_Terror_

_Helplessness_

Stephen had no idea how to help Tony. Everything he was feeling was perfectly reasonable. The only things he could possibly do to help was share the burden.

And help him rest.

“Tony…come to bed,” Stephen said, arms coming around Tony’s waist, trying to be as sweet but commanding as possible, even with his head and back pounding.

“I will…soon, honey,” Tony said. “Right now I’m trying to use the Power Stone to get the same connection we had the other day with the Guardians. I need to find out if Xandar is going to be able to help us and if they’ll get here before Thanos does.” He tilted his head to the side and rolled his eyes. “Not that we have any way of knowing when Thanos will show up!” he shouted and ran his unprotected hand through his hair.

Stephen tried to catch him around the waist, but Tony moved to a different station before he could. “And speaking of Thanos,” Tony said, playing with an equation. “Friday, run that. I need to get on the horn to your Elders, make sure they know he’s coming.”

“I’m sure Wong can do that—” 

“Plus, the United Nations doesn’t one hundred percent believe me on this, and they kinda don’t want to seeing as how the world needs to be rebuilt. 

“And what was going on with Loki teaching magic to Wanda in the Purple Dimension? Is that a thing? Should we be checking on that?” Stephen felt a chill of Tony’s fear run down his own spine. “Yeah, let’s check on that.”

Yet another screen popped up with Wanda and Loki’s faces on it. It said ‘check on the chaos duo’ in large red letters.

“That’s an excellent idea, Tony, but after we’ve rested,” Stephen said, again putting his hands on Tony in an effort to slow him down. “We have some time. And we need to sleep. You especially.”

“Me? I’m fine, Doc,” Tony said. “Me and my coffee pot are shocked and hurt that you would imply we need sleep. Shocked!”

“It’s been days,” Stephen said, but he could sense this was a losing battle. Tony was hellbent on saving the world, and Stephen had no idea how to convince him that sleep was necessary before battle. 

The Cloak tapped Stephen on the forehead. 

“Ow,” he said, frowning at the Cloak.

“You okay?” Tony asked, turning around and finally giving Stephen his undivided attention.

“Yes, I’m fine—” he started, but the Cloak nudged him, then feigned falling to the floor. 

_Oh, you sneaky thing_

Stephen sighed and mentally resigned himself to the indignity of exaggerating. “I’m fine, but my head and back are aching,” Stephen said, rubbing his back, then giving an honest start when he rubbed the wrong way and his hands seized up. “Plus, everything is cold without you.”

Stephen looked down to the floor, then up in the most pitiful way he could. Tony looked him up and down, like he was about to fall apart any second now. He wrapped a hand around Stephen’s waist and put another hand on his cheek. 

“You okay, baby? Do you need to go up to med bay?”

“No,” Stephen said, because that was seriously the last thing he needed. “I just want to get a good sleep, but I want you with me.”

Tony wrapped himself around Stephen. “I’m almost done here, and then—“

“No, you’re not,” Stephen said, holding him tighter. “You’re nowhere close to being done. Neither am I. You think there aren’t things I should be doing? What I should be doing is checking up on the Sanctum. You know, the Sanctum whose protection is my sacred duty?”

“Yeah, but your head…”

“Yes, I need to rest before I’ll be able to help in any real way. Even Wong is sleeping now. He’ll make his report to the Elders in the morning.”

Stephen took his sling ring from the pocket of his sweat pants and created a portal right over Tony’s bed.

“Please?” he said. “I’m so tired, Tony.” He rubbed his nose into Tony’s hair and went for the kill. 

Tony was stiff in his arms for a heartbeat, then relaxed. “Me too,” he breathed, wrapping his arms around Stephen’s bruised back.

Stephen winced, but held Tony tight when he tried to pull away.

Tony rubbed his nose against Stephen’s ear, muttering apologies, let his arms fall lower then squeezed Stephen’s ass…

Which had been just as roughed up by being slammed into a mountain as his back.

“Ow! Tony!”

“Sorry!” Tony said, finally backing away, hands in the air. “I was trying to be considerate!” Free from Stephen and the Cloak, Tony turned back to his screens. “Seriously though, I’ll be up soon. Just let me get to a good stopping point.”

There wouldn’t be a good stopping point. Tony was right in one regard: there was an infinite amount of work to do before Thanos arrived. And since they had no idea when that would be, Stephen could understand Tony’s need to keep working. To be as prepared as possible for an enemy they only defeated the first time because Stephen cheated by looking ahead.

But Tony was his bondmate. And it was Stephen’s job to look after him.

So he figured it might be okay if he played dirty. Just this one time.

“Tony…” he whispered, wrapping his arms around Tony from behind. He concentrated on exactly how torn apart he’d been when magic had failed and the bond had left him. He let himself remember the desolation and despair, the loneliness he’d felt at Tony’s absence. 

Tony’s shoulders fell, exhaustion finally catching up with him. “Oh, Stephen…” 

And if dredging up all those terrible feelings naturally made a few tears fall, then that was only natural. Tony turned in his arms and fit himself into Stephen’s hold as closely as he could.

“You’re not fighting fair, Doc,” he said, wiping away Stephen’s tears.

“I missed you, Tony. And before we start another fight, all I want is one night with you in my arms. Please.”

Tony leaned up and kissed him gently. “If there were rules to being magic married, you’d be in violation of the Geneva Convention.”

“Bonded. And hmm, maybe,” Stephen said, his lips an inch away from Tony’s.

“But all’s fair in love and war?” Tony said.

“Well, I don’t know about war.”

Tony laughed, held out his hand, and led them to the portal. Then he gave an adorably confused look and tilted his head to the side.

“Okay, my perspective might be off. How do we do this?” he asked, looking through the portal. It was set directly over their bed.

“Just walk through. I’ll handle the rest.”

Tony did just that, Stephen following close behind him. Tony landed on the bed with an oomph onto the pillows.

“Ugh, I stink,” Tony said, already trying to get up to head to the bathroom.

“No,” Stephen said, wrapping himself around Tony. “I know you. You’ll open holograms in the shower and have a conference call through the shower head.”

“Joke’s on you,” Tony said, conceding defeat and getting comfortable in the blankets. “The microphone is the ceiling.”

“Of course it is,” Stephen said. 

The Cloak squirmed its way underneath both Stephen and Tony and wrapped itself around them. With an exhausted sigh, Tony laid on his back so Stephen could stay off his.

Slowly, the fear and helplessness Tony had felt earlier diminished. It didn’t leave him completely, but Stephen felt the warmth, contentment, and love that now flowed easily between them again. His muscles unclenched, and his body finally relaxed.

“I missed this,” Stephen whispered. In the darkness of night, it felt safe to confess his feelings, wrapped around the man he loved. The constant fear that had been with him since magic had died left him. Even if Tony didn’t already know what he was feeling, Stephen felt safe to speak from his heart. “I know it hasn’t been very long, but losing this bond felt like losing a piece of myself.”

Tony kissed his forehead, then the tip of his nose, then waited for Stephen to lean up to kiss him properly.

They kissed lazily, both too tired and hurt for anything more. The joy they both felt was shared between them in an endless loop. After a few minutes, Tony left gentle kisses on Stephen’s face and pulled back.

“Never again,” Tony said.

“Never again.”

Tony picked up Stephen’s hand, ran his fingers over the scars as he thought. “I remember being so terrified when we bonded. I didn’t know you.” He picked up Stephen’s hand and gently kissed his palm. “But now…

“Remember what Thor said?” Tony whispered. “And your old books too? Not even death will separate us.”

“No,” Stephen said. “But let’s not test that.” He grabbed hold of Tony even tighter.

“I’m working on it,” Tony said into Stephen’s hair. “Can’t be too hard. We already beat the shit out of that guy once. How hard can it be to do it again?”

A shiver of fear went through Stephen before he could help himself.

“Shh,” Tony whispered. “Against you and me? He doesn’t stand a chance.”

_Yes,_ Stephen thought. _Our greatest weapon. He doesn’t stand a chance against the bond._

Stephen nestled closer to Tony, the Cloak a constant warmth behind and around him. He let himself drift off, reminding himself of the impossibility of Tony Stark.

*

Stephen lingered on the edge of sleep.

He hugged Tony closer to him, nestling his cheek into his shoulder and wrapping a leg around Tony’s. The Cloak was giving off the perfect amount of heat for his recovering back.

This time, a sunbeam shining directly in his eye was the culprit. He grunted and moved to hide behind Tony’s ear to block it out. Tony breathed deeply and shifted as he slowly started to wake.

“Hmm,” Stephen grunted. “Too sunny.”

“Gotta do something about that,” Tony said. “Ow,” he said, then had the nerve to shuffle Stephen’s pillow around. “Oh my God, my arm is asleep. Stephen, were you sleeping on me all night?”

“I’d still be sleeping on you now if you’d quit moving.”

“Ha,” Tony said, getting up. “Cute. Be right back.”

The sounds of the toilet flushing and Tony showering and brushing his teeth were heard. Stephen slowly turned onto his back, relieved when it felt far better than yesterday.

“You really are the best cloak,” he muttered, running a hand over it.

The Cloak fluttered happily.

Stephen ran a finger down its lapel, so grateful to have it back in his life. The Cloak brushed Stephen’s cheeks, and if it had vocal cords it would have been cooing. Then it turned around quickly and zipped to the other side of the room.

Stephen lifted an eyebrow and sat up.

“Surprise attack!” Tony shouted playfully before jumping on the bed and gently dropping himself down on top of Stephen. He reached under Stephen’s shirt and ran his fingers softly along his sides, much to Stephen’s dismay.

“No!” he laughed and curled up to defend from the attack. “Unfair advantage!” Tony gently tickled Stephen for a few moments, Stephen trying to twist to get away, then settled on getting outside help. 

“Aren’t you supposed to defend me?” he laughed towards the Cloak.

The Cloak came around and tickled under Stephen’s chin.

“Traitor!” he shouted, then twisted himself around and blew raspberries on Tony’s stomach.

“Ah!” Tony cried out, laughing. “Friday, help!”

“He’s ticklish on his shoulders, too, Doctor Strange,” she said helpfully.

“Traitor!” he said, “both of you!” But Stephen just collapsed on top of Tony, letting the play fight end.

“Mmm,” he hummed, wrapping himself around Tony, determined to not let him go. 

At least for a little while. After everything, after Titan, after dealing with rogue Avengers, after losing magic, and _Loki_ surely they’d earned a few hours? 

“We should get up,” Tony said, his voice filled with regret. “We should check on everyone. And I have so much to do.”

He was right of course. There was so much to do, and they had no idea how long they had to do it. The smartest, most responsible thing to do would be to get up and get to it.

But Stephen wanted. 

And one night of rest was hardly enough to make up for all Tony had been deprived. After all the work he’d done, after all the support he’d given Stephen alone, let alone Loki and Thor and all the rest of the Avengers and…

Tony deserved far more than to be forced out of bed and back to work so soon.

And with all the trials stretched out in front of them, Stephen wondered if he could steal just a little bit more time.

“Will you give me something if I ask for it?” he asked.

Tony turned to him, taking Stephen’s shaking hand into his own. “Anything.”

With wonder and amazement, Stephen again allowed himself to count his blessings. So many things could have gone wrong in the Purple Dimension. So many things could have gone wrong just trying _to get_ to the Purple Dimension. But everything worked out perfectly, and here they were. In bed together, their bond back, the Cloak back, all but ready to face the world.

But not yet.

“A few hours. We don’t know when we’ll get to have this again. Just give me a little time.”

Tony smiled sadly, eyes welled with tears, and took a deep breath.

“Yeah,” he said, his voice choking. “Anything you want.” He pulled Stephen to him and ran a hand gently through his hair. “And when all this is over, we’ll take a long vacation.”

“Mmm.”

“Where do you want to go?” Tony asked.

“Should we be counting our chickens before they’re hatched?”

“Nebraska,” Tony chuckled. 

“No!” Stephen said. “Not unless you want to watch a game. And even then, we have football here. Don’t we?”

“Do me a favor and ask Sam that question. And yes, to the chickens. Yes, we absolutely should. We will count all our chickens and ride them into the sunset. The whole nine yards. Or however far you could ride a chicken.” He put his chin on Stephen’s chest. “Now. Where do we ride off to?”

“Well, where do you want to go?” Stephen asked.

Tony laughed. “That’s usually my line.”

Stephen leaned into Tony’s hand. “Well, when I want to go to the most exclusive hotel with the best food in the finest suit, you’re my man…”

“When am I not your man?”

“But what about where I can take you?” Stephen said, letting his voice drop low.

“Like…on top of an iceberg?” Tony asked. “Places us mere mortals wouldn’t be able to access without magic?”

“Well, if you’d like,” Stephen said. “I was thinking more like universes of eternal summer. An entire planet I know of that’s nothing but hot springs and green meadows. Mountain ranges where you can overlook pink oceans. Cities with steeples that sparkle like diamonds.”

“Sounds great, but honey, I have got to show you the Riviera.”

Stephen laughed. “There’s one elvish princess in particular who owes me a favor. Maybe we can stay in her castle. Her planet has three moons, and when the moons rise—”

“Princess in a castle, huh?” Tony asked, lifting himself up and looking down on Stephen with a smirk. “Should I be jealous?” he asked, teasing.

“Hmm.” Stephen enjoyed teasing Tony probably more than he should. At first he’d thought it came from the benefit of having the bond: no need to be jealous or suspicious. Now he knew that Tony knew him, and he knew Tony. 

It made playing with him much more fun. “Well, she does have a castle.”

“And what do you call all this?” Tony asked, gesturing around.

“The extremely dysfunctional Brady Bunch.”

Tony laid his body on top of Stephen’s. “I’ll fight to keep you.” His eyes were bright, and he looked so much better than before. “All’s fair in love and war, right?”

“Still don’t know about war,” Stephen said. 

Tony’s laugh was so beautiful Stephen couldn’t help kiss him. He rolled on top of him and deepened the kiss, his hands sore and shaking but still able to touch where he wanted. Tony gave a pleased sighed and gently touched his back.

“Okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” Stephen said, then kissed him again.

It had been too long. And it had really only been the once. How could it have been only the one time they did this? Tony was beyond beautiful, and Stephen couldn’t believe they had ended up here. With all their trials, through all their suffering, he still considered himself a lucky man, just because he had Tony Stark in his arms.

Tony’s hands slipped down his back and under the waistband of his sweatpants. 

“Boss…”

“Not now, Friday,” Tony said into a kiss.

“Wait!” Stephen shouted, pulling away. “Not again. We’re not doing this again, Tony. We listen to Friday now.”

Tony sighed, but didn’t take his hands off Stephen’s ass. “What is it, Friday? Are Loki and Wanda practicing fire magic in my workshop? Is Thor roasting an elk in my kitchen? Is there an army waging war on the butterflies outside?”

“No.”

“Well, then,” Tony said, then leaned up to kiss Stephen again. Stephen backed away with a frown. 

“Peter is rounding the corner to you,” she said.

Both Tony and Stephen’s eyes met and they split apart just as Peter opened the door.

“Dads!” he shouted, then jumped into the middle of the bed with them. “Friday said you were still sleeping so I wanted to give you a minute.”

“Great, kid. Thanks,” Tony said, wrapping his bottom half in blankets. The Cloak did the same for Stephen.

“Do you want to watch a movie?” Peter asked, completely oblivious to how mortified Tony and Stephen both were. “I was trying to find a good one about space, since you know—we were just there. So I found this really old movie called 2001: A Space Odyssey. Can we watch it?”

“No,” said Friday.

“Um, Peter,” Stephen said gently. “Maybe we could all do something together…later.”

Peter looked up with big, brown, Bambi eyes for a moment, then sighed, like he hadn’t been expecting rejection but wasn’t completely surprised to find it.

“Sure, Doctor Strange,” Peter said, calling him by him title. It surprised Stephen to be hurt by it. “Sorry to bother you.”

“Hey, you’re not bothering us, kid,” Tony said. “You’re never bothering us. It’s just, Stephen and I were about to do…adult things.”

Stephen elbowed Tony in the arm. Peter looked confused.

“Taxes,” Stephen said. “We were going to do our taxes.”

Peter looked disbelieving for a moment before he finally caught on. “Oh. Oh!” He buried his face in his hands and all but fell off the bed. “Oh, I am so sorry. I’m leaving!”

“You don’t have to leave,” Tony said.

“We’ll come find you later, Peter,” Stephen said.

Peter just waved a hand back at them as he ran through the door.

“Taxes?” Tony asked, opening the bedside table drawer.

“It was that or gripe about our various ailments. Discuss…ointment and heating pads.”

“That reminds me, do you need your heating pad?”

Stephen threw a pillow at Tony’s head.

“Oh, honey,” Tony said, grabbing hold of Stephen’s hips. “You’re making me want to do taxes with you all night long.”

“Oh, shut up and kiss me in triplicate.”

*

Tony’s pillows seemed to have multiplied. That was the only thing that made sense, as Stephen was leaning on them, dipping his pizza in ranch and waiting for The Princess Bride to start.

“Come on, Pete,” Tony said as they were turning the corner to their room. “We said we wanted to hang out with you later. Well, it’s later.”

The squeak of Peter’s sneakers showed his hesitation to enter their bedroom again.

“I don’t want to disturb you if you’re…discussing insurance premiums or something.”

“How do you even know what insurance premiums are?” Stephen yelled towards the open door. Scruffy brown hair peaked around the door, afraid of what it would see.

The pile of endless pillows had more than enough room for Peter. Stephen gestured towards the pizza boxes at the end of the bed and then tapped a pillow in between him and Tony. 

Peter’s hesitation ended at the sight—or perhaps smell—of food.

“May’s a nurse, remember?” Peter said, diving into the pillows. “She’s always had to work a lot, but she said our landlord just lowered the rent for the first time ever for some reason.” He stuffed an entire slice of pizza in his mouth. “She was really confused,” he said, muffled, “but I’m glad she gets more time off. Especially with all this…” he said, gesturing out the windows.

Stephen and Tony shared a look. “That’s great, kid. Don’t eat all the ranch. Stephen might bite your hand off.”

“Yeah, not gonna be a problem,” Peter said, handing the ranch back to Stephen.

Friday put the movie on and dimmed the lights. The ancient theme from Hardball came on. Tony sighed wistfully but relaxed into the pillows.

“It’s so weird seeing Savage as a kid now,” Tony said.

“Tell me about it,” Stephen said. “We’re the same age. It’s like watching a contemporary be stuck in time.”

“This is one of my favorite classic movies,” Peter said. Tony and Stephen gave each other another look and chose to ignore him.

“Although the most interesting part for me personally was falling a little in love with Westley, Buttercup, and Inigo all at the same time,” Tony said, grabbing another slice.

Peter laughed. “What about you, Doctor Dad?”

“I also duel with both hands.”

They relaxed back into the pillows, leaning on each other, and munching on their pizza as the movie finally moved onto green rolling fields and gentle chords. Peter leaned his hips into Stephen while putting his head on Tony’s shoulder. Tony put his arm over Peter in a gentle hold, but his fingers played with the ends of Stephen’s hair.

The Cloak draped itself over the three of them. Everything was perfect. Stephen concentrated on the taste of the pizza, of the warmth of the Cloak and Peter, the sound of Buttercup slowly falling in love, and the gentle touch of fingers in his hair. 

There was nothing else right now. He eased back into the pillows and opened another container of ranch.

The scene where Inigo and Westley dueled came on, and Tony took his hand out of Stephen’s hair and put it over Peter’s eyes. 

“No, sorry, kid. It’s just too hot. I can’t let you watch this.”

“Mr. Stark, I’ve seen this movie twenty times!” he shouted trying to escape Tony’s grip.

“Did May know? This sweet, precious child.”

“I want to see Inigo!”

“Tony, let him see Inigo,” Stephen said, licking some ranch from his fingers.

They settled down again until Westley caught up to Vizzini.

“I would totally build up an immunity to iocane powder for you, baby,” Tony said.

“Yeah, don’t do that.”

“I would cross a fire swamp full of ROUSs for you.”

“No one is asking you to.”

“I’d fight the six fingered man and win for you.”

“You are arguably a weapon of mass destruction, and he has a sword.”

Tony smiled over Peter’s head. 

“Would you give up ranch for me?”

“Oh, fuck no.”

While Westley and Buttercup tumbled down the hill, Tony tried to dip his pizza crust in Stephen’s ranch. 

“Come on, just a little bit,” Tony said.

“No, get your own!”

“There were like three huge containers!”

“You should have asked for four!”

Tony finally jostled Stephen hard enough that the container of ranch went flying through the air and landed on the Cloak.

“Oh, no,” Tony muttered. “It’s okay, Red, we’ll get you cleaned up in no…”

Undeterred, Stephen dipped his pizza onto the Cloak’s collar and continued eating and watching the movie. The Cloak sat stiffly in his lap like an angry cat.

“I don’t know how I feel about this,” Peter said a few moments later.

“Seriously, Stephen?” Tony asked.

“What?”

“Are you gonna lick it now?” Tony asked, gesturing to the Cloak.

The Cloak trembled in fear.

Stephen rolled his eyes. “Of course not, don’t be ridiculous.” He took a shaking finger, scooped up the last, and put it in his mouth.

“Now I really don’t know how I feel about this,” Peter said softly.

“What?” Stephen asked. He wasn’t going to waste good ranch. 

“Definitely getting one of those fountains for the wedding,” Tony muttered, then sat back to watch the movie. The Cloak shook itself out, more than capable of cleaning itself.

The rest of the movie was spent lazily chatting and dozing while Westley got Buttercup back, and Inigo and Fezzik became heroes. The Cloak nestled itself over all three of them as they watched the four friends ride off together, and the most passionate kiss of all time.

“I could kiss you better than that,” Tony whispered. Peter pretended to be asleep.

“I welcome you to try,” Stephen said, turning his head to kiss Tony’s hand.

“A kiss of tru wuv,” Peter said, still pretending to be sleeping.

Tony laughed. “Okay, up you get. Movie time is over. Time to go back to work.”

“Oh, no!” Peter said, jumping onto the bed in his socks. “No way. You two totally traumatized me earlier. You owe me.”

“We did not traumatize you,” Tony said. “We were figuring out what kind of origami pattern the napkins should be at our reception. With…the sheets.”

Stephen rolled his eyes. “What do you want to do now, Peter?”

*

“As fun as this is, we really should be working,” Tony said to Stephen on a private channel. They exited Stephen’s portal onto the top of Stark Tower, Peter in his suit, bouncing up and down like the kid he was. 

Stephen wasn’t very far behind. Peter’s excitement was the antithesis of Tony’s. He looked almost guilty to be out of his workshop, like he wasn’t allowed to enjoy anything until the work was done.

Even after everything he’d done to save their universe. 

_Maybe framing it like it was work would be helpful._

“We should definitely be working,” Stephen said. “But remember a few days ago when you went to England just to show your face?” He looked out over New York, which had been mostly unaffected by the loss of magic, but still saw its share of worry and struggle. “We need to show the world we’re here, we’re back, and nothing can stop us if we’re together.”

“I think we just had a press conference that did that,” Tony said, putting up his faceplate.

Stephen stepped up onto his toes, and the Cloak took him to the air. It was the first time they flew together since the Cloak came back, or at least when they weren’t both in mortal danger. Stephen allowed himself to feel the joy of it, the happiness and wonder that came with really flying.

Something he hadn’t been sure he’d ever have again.

“It’s not the same,” Stephen said. “This will feel more genuine. If not for Peter, do this for everyone who’s about to see this on Twitter. Everyone who’s been hurt and needs hope from their hero.”

Tony looked towards Stephen, and though he couldn’t see his expression through the faceplate, he knew Tony was hanging on his every word.

“Hero,” he muttered to himself, then switched to the regular channel. “Ready, Underoos?”

“I was born ready,” Peter said, then jumped off the building. 

Tony raced down after him, Stephen and the Cloak following close behind. 

“Woo hoo!” Peter yelled, catching himself just a few feet before he hit the ground.

“Kid, I swear!” Tony shouted as he flew after him.

Stephen and the Cloak kept up with them, staying mostly silent, just enjoying a family fly through New York.

Everyone looked up as they passed, some waving, many taking pictures on their phones. But they were all smiling, looking like they were seeing something special, something they were relieved to see again. 

“Okay, you were right,” Tony said to Stephen.

“Right about what?” Peter asked as he swung from skyscraper to skyscraper.

“This was the best street to fly down,” Stephen said. 

“Oh, I could have told you that. Hey, everyone!” he yelled, waving with one hand while he swung with the other.

The wind blew through Stephen’s hair, the feeling of the sun on his face and the Cloak on his back warming him to the core. Tony flew leisurely around him and Peter, hand running along the Cloak and then turning circles around Peter playfully as they flew.

Cars stopped, people in their offices crowded their windows.

“You’re trending on Twitter, boss,” Friday said into their comms. 

“Tell me they got my good side,” Tony said.

“I don’t know, Tony, I think you look a little shiny,” Stephen said.

“Don’t be jealous, honey. Tell me the tags, Fri. I’m curious.”

“#founddoctorstrange, ironstrange, iron man, and strangefamily are all trending,” Friday said. 

“Strange family?” Tony asked.

“I like it,” Peter said, swinging around in a circle to another street.

“What about Iron Family?” Tony asked.

“Hmm, doesn’t have the right ring to it,” Stephen said. He could feel Tony rolling his eyes.

“Boss, I think you should head to Time Square,” Friday said.

_Fear_

_Anxiousness_

_Determination_

“I’m on it,” Tony said, increasing his thrusters so the Cloak had a hard time keeping up. Stephen and Peter were just a few feet behind him when they finally got to Time Square.

There was no threat, intergalactic or otherwise. No monsters, no bad people with big guns.

No Thanos.

What was there was an enormous crowd of people waving and cheering. The big screens that advertised soda and broadway shows and underwear all had Tony on them.

“We love Iron Man,” “In Iron Man We Trust”, “Thank you, Mr. Stark.”

Pictures of Tony in a suit looking like the genius billionaire he was. Pictures of he and Stephen walking around town. Pictures of them looking happy.

Other screens said, “Thank you, Avengers” and another “Welcome back, Doctor Strange.”

_Wonder_

_Amazement_

_Love_

Tony turned around and asked, “Did you plan this?”

Stephen just shook his head. Peter had parked himself on a nearby street light. 

Stephen approached him, both of them hovering in midair, and ran a hand over the faceplate. Tony let it descend into the suit.

“What is all this, Stephen?”

_Oh, Tony._

He leaned forward, letting his forehead touch Tony’s. A thousand cameras were going off all around them.

“This is the people knowing who their hero is.”

Tony looked around, baffled, like he couldn’t understand this was happening.

“I…”

“You’re my hero, too, you know,” Stephen said. “Team Stark,” he whispered. 

And behind him, Peter shouted, “A kiss of tru wuv!”

Stephen felt a smile take over his entire face. Then he wrapped an arm around Tony’s waist, leaned his head back, and gave him a kiss that blew every other kiss in history completely away.

The crowd roared. Cameras flashed, and Stephen might have seen his own self kissing Tony on a jumbotron. 

Slowly, Stephen pulled away, Tony’s eyes still closed, still overwhelmed.

“Hey,” Stephen said softly. “You want to fly around for a little bit more before we head home?”

Tony finally opened his eyes and looked around. He seemed to finally understand. Overwhelmed, tears filling his eyes, he looked to Stephen and said, “As you wish.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was actually promised to glaucous_atlanticus after all the angst and the Cloak being dead. I promised a nice chapter full of bed and pillows.
> 
> I'm trying something different these next two weeks. So I'm keeping to my updating every two weeks schedule, but next week (Saturday the 18th) I will post a _porn_ chapter.
> 
> It's actually the scene that faded to black once Peter left in this chapter. It's 2k words and my first attempt at smut in about a decade so I have nooooo idea how it will go. But I'm posting it as a separate fic in the series so this one can stay rated mature and not explicit. It's not actually going to be a series, this fic will be long as hell but it will be a complete story. 
> 
> And then the next week a new real chapter. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone for sticking around in this extremely long fic. I appreciate every single one of your comments!


	30. With Great Power...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who continues to support this ridiculously long fic! I can't commit to the amount of chapters left (I tried and then rewrote the outline an hour later so yeah no), but I'll just say that the end is near. My goal is to finish the story by May. We'll see how it goes.
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas.

In his defense, instant intergalactic communications had hardly been his major. Or even his minor. Or something he ever thought he’d have to worry about, ever.

“Come on, Stark,” he muttered to himself. “You literally opened a portal to another universe. It can’t be that hard to call across your own.”

Okay, so maybe he’d already made the call to Xandar. And yeah, the estimated time for its arrival was currently thirty-six hours and not approximately 2.5 million years. And yes, that was an incredible, earth-shattering achievement by itself.

But…

“Come on, baby,” he muttered to his console. “You know who I am.”

“Does Strange have reason to be jealous of your console?” asked Loki from the sofa.

Nope. Not getting distracted by mischief gods. Not today. He had a world to save. And he’d figure out how to perfect intergalactic communication on his own. He was Tony Stark, damn it. He didn’t need to rely on ancient all-powerful building blocks of creation.

But if certain ancient all-powerful building blocks of creation were literally sitting five feet away from him…

He put his hands in his pocket and absolutely did not turn around.

“Go faster,” he said, poking the communication relay. He glanced over his shoulder, then started to fiddle with a different screen.

“No,” said Loki.

“Oh, come on!” Tony said, using a screwdriver to scratch his back. “This is ridiculous. We literally just used these things. What possible difference could it make now?”

Loki just sat there, book in hand, with a better resting bitch face than Wong.

“ET phone home?” Tony asked.

Loki sighed. “The Infinity Stones are only to be used as a last resort, Stark. Not a first. They’re not something to be taken lightly.”

The predictable retort about how Loki once did just that died before Tony could even open his mouth. Tony had been there when it happened, and Loki had already explained the why.

“Even your bondmate knows not to use the Time Stone at will,” Loki said, going back to his book. “And he’s an idiot.”

Completely predictable insult. Barely a two, but still. “You know, you don’t have to sit on my sofa while I work. You could, you know, leave. You and Thor have your own floor.”

“And yet I’m finding myself in a position I haven’t occupied for years,” Loki said, then turned a page. “The voice of reason.”

“Uh huh. What’s the real reason, Snowflake?” Tony asked, then turned back to his console. “You afraid of Pepper? Which is actually a pretty smart move on your part.”

“I just told you. Besides, I am working,” Loki said. “I’m putting together a curriculum for Wanda, now that I’ve agreed to train her.”

A wild fear ran through Tony, only calmed by taking a deep breath and running a finger over his amulet. “Yeah…”

Loki’s eyes watched his hand. “I understand your hesitance with this, but I assure you it is always better to have more training than less. The entire reason she got into this mess in the first place is by lack of training.”

“Right,” Tony said. But somehow that hardly made him feel better.

The little butterfly behind his heart fluttered just a little harder, taking up just a little more space and driving away some of his fear. Tony held the amulet tighter and let him.

“Maybe you should take a break, boss?” Friday asked.

“What?” Tony asked, still concentrating on Stephen.

“Take a break, Stark,” Loki said.

“Huh? No!” Tony shouted. “I literally just took a break. Friday, you were there! We had a family fly through New York, Twitter had a field day, SI stock actually went up for a change, and I’m pretty sure Stephen and I got the photo we’ll use for our wedding announcement from someone’s cell phone.”

“That was ten hours ago,” Friday said.

“Exactly.” Tony paced through his workshop, looking at the crawling numbers from over his shoulder, out of the corner of his eye, from behind an experimental repulsor. “Ten hours and all I’ve accomplished was getting the Security Council to put themselves on high alert. I still have to meet with Secretary Ross, that prick.”

“Boss?”

Friday should be used to this by now. “Maybe if I sneak up on it, it’ll stop eluding me and I’ll be able to figure it out.”

Loki chuckled and went back to his book. Friday was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Why don’t I have DUM-E bring you a sandwich?”

“Nah, I’ll have dinner with Stephen when he gets home.”

“It’s one in the morning.”

Tony checked his mental clock. “Huh. Well, maybe we’ll have breakfast. Apparently the Cloak makes a mean omelette.” Like a freight train running into a mountain, his thoughts switched from calling Xandar to calling Stephen. “He hasn’t called, has he?”

Quietly, Tony checked up on Stephen through their bond. It was almost impossible to put into words, but Tony figured it was kinda like looking up from a book over to Stephen, to see what he was reading. 

Stephen felt prickly and mildly irritated, but otherwise fine, which was exactly what Tony expected. He was on his way to Kamar-Taj for the first time since magic had died. The elders had called him to give testimony on what exactly had happened.

Mildly annoyed was probably the best they were going to get.

“You have him on immediate put through, right?” Tony asked.

“Yes, boss. Stephen, Pepper, Rhodey, and Peter Quill.”

“Right,” Tony said, ducked behind an old suit. He quickly jumped up and glared at the holographic numbers, but they still refused to make any sense.

“Damn it.”

“Stark,” a voice called out.

“Quill?” Tony said, amazed and relieved. “Friday, did we do it?”

“Incoming call from Peter Quill, boss. Sorry.”

Loki was beside himself laughing.

“Ugh. Get anything we can from the call,” Tony said, coming over to the hologram of Quill’s face. “I’m gonna crack this today.” 

Quill looked better than the last time Tony saw him. But then, the last time Quill had been in a hospital on Xandar laid up with the rest of his crew. He’d take all the improvement he could get.

“Lookin’ good, Quill,” he said.

“Feeling good, Stark,” Quill said in return. He looked like his attention was off-screen, flipping switches and moving things around that Tony couldn’t see. “We’re on our way to you with about a hundred Star Blasters and anyone else who wants to fall in along the way.”

Tony threw his hands up in the air. “Great! That’s—excellent, great news! What the hell is a Star Blaster?”

Loki grabbed his sides and laughed harder.

“It’s a ship, Stark.” Quill paused and looked at the display, like he was looking Tony in the eye. “Xandar was completely decimated by Thanos. There wasn’t much left, but they sent just about all they had. They say they have dibs on his head, but I told them I couldn’t make any promises.”

“Yeah, I’ve never been one for trophies. They can have the head, toes, that weird chin thing, whatever they want. Just get here before he does.”

“Yeah, easier said than done,” said a voice off-screen.

“Is that the raccoon?” Tony asked.

“That’s who’s gonna be shovin’ his foot so far up your ass you can taste Xandarian mud if you’re not careful, pretty boy,” said Rocket, who shoved part of his face into view.

“He’s not even the pretty one, dude,” Quill said. “Just wait till you meet the wife.”

“Hey, leave Stephen alone. And get back to Thanos. Do you even know where he is?”

Quill sat back in his big, dumb, captain’s chair and looked wary. “Reports show the Sanctuary is somewhere nearby. So we’re gonna get the hell out of Dodge as quickly as possible.” He leaned further back and put his foot up on the console. “We’re also gonna put out the call along the way.”

Tony did the math. “So, we have your ship, a hundred Star Crunch—”

“Star Blasters!” shouted the raccoon off screen.

“That’s what I said. But you think you could pick up more on your way here?” Tony tapped his lips in thought. “And how long is it going to take for you to get here?”

Quill shrugged. “About thirty jump points between us and you. So…a few weeks.”

“Seriously?” Tony asked. “We have no idea when this guy is going to show up!”

“Hey, it’s not my fault your planet is some back water podunk. We’ll get there as quickly as we can. Keep in mind we’re picking up as many ships as we can on the way.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, knowing that aside from a few of his minions and the beast himself, Tony had never had to face Thanos’ army. He hadn’t been in Wakanda when the ship had sent down that hoard of monsters. He’d been busy fighting his own on Titan. 

“Hey, Stark,” Quill said, bringing Tony out of his rambling thoughts. “Tell me you have a plan. Something that’s gonna work for good this time.”

He’d expected something like this from Quill, but that didn’t stop it from pissing him off. “Okay, that’s not fair,” he said, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t know about Xandar, but things got a little hairy here when magic died.”

“Yeah, all the science guys were losing their minds,” Rocket said, jumping into his chair. “It was hilarious!”

“My point is, it wasn’t something Stephen could have foreseen.”

“Yeah, okay, but a plan? You have one?” Quill finally pressed.

Flight-or-fight response kicked in, which for Tony meant throwing up a smile as he said, “Of course! Working on it right now,” he said, gesturing to his gauntlet.

“Right,” Quill said, like he knew Tony was full of shit. “A hundred ships. That’s what I got for you. Anything else is a bonus. We’ll be there in three weeks.”

“Understood. Uh. Over and out?”

Quill smirked and cut the line.

The reality of the situation hit Tony like a bucket of ice water. All this time they’d been so concerned with getting magic back, they hadn’t had time to concentrate on Thanos. And yesterday, Tony was busy trying to get everyone just to _believe_ him and get on board for preparing for his imminent arrival.

At no point had he begun to sit down and actually create a plan of attack.

He sighed and rubbed his screwdriver behind his ear.

This was usually Steve’s job. Well, that was one of the better things about getting the band back together. More heads in the game to help strategize. He’d talk to Steve as soon as he woke up.

_Dread_

_Heaviness_

_Sorrow_

“Oh, hey, what?” Tony said to his heart. “No, what’s wrong? Friday, where’s Stephen? Is he okay?”

“Doctor Strange is currently in the New York Sanctum. His vital signs are all normal.”

The sorrow Stephen felt wasn’t just a quick jab. It permeated Stephen’s heart, sending Tony shivering with a chill down his back. 

“Okay,” he said to himself. “Friday, send Stephen a text. Ask him if he’s okay.”

“Done,” said Friday.

“Stark,” Loki said, then waited until he got Tony’s attention. “That rogue raises a very good question,” Loki said, finally calm again. “What is your plan? We know Thanos is coming, and yet we have yet to hear a word from you.”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m working on it.”

Loki tapped a finger against the spine of his book. “If I may, I feel as though you haven’t been using your greatest strengths in battle.”

“Oh, please, great tactician,” Tony said, sass dialed up to eleven, “please educate me in how to defend the Earth.” He turned back to his screens and said, “Your tactics worked so well last time.”

Blue mist hovered at the corner of his eye before attacking and encasing his gauntlet with ice. His hand burned and he shouted, pulling his hand out and turning to Loki.

The son of a bitch hadn’t even gotten off the sofa.

“Who do you think Thor’s right hand will be in ruling Asgard?” he asked, standing up and walking over to Tony. Tony, who was just reminded that magic was back. “Do you think that’s an accident? Or because Asgard’s population is decimated?”

Standing there, his body breaking out in a light sweat, an angry magic user standing in his face, Tony reminded himself of three things: the nanoparticles were still on his chest, Stephen was literally just a portal away, and Loki was an ally.

“Okay, fine,” he said, like he wasn’t shaking in his boots.

And he wasn’t. His boots were tipped in nanoparticles. They weren't shaking anywhere.

Loki looked him over and took a step back. The hard look he’d had on his face faded. “You aren’t using your greatest weapons. You aren’t going to defeat Thanos with a repulsor blast, a bow and arrow, and a shield.”

The witty retort died on the tip of his tongue. He knew Loki was right.

“I understand why you’re hesitant to trust Wanda, but believe me when I tell you she has tremendous power. She could be an incredible weapon against Thanos.”

“Yeah, I was there when she tore those wolves in half. Not hard to believe,” Tony said.

Loki nodded. “Banner. The Hulk lost in hand-to-hand against Thanos once, but that doesn’t mean he would lose again.”

Tony lifted an eyebrow. “Bruce and the Hulk are still on the outs,” Tony said. “And I don’t think Bruce is gonna trust any magic from Wanda. At least not in that department.”

“Perhaps not Wanda, but maybe Strange? It’s pointless to have an ally like the Hulk yet leave him out of the fight. And then…” Loki looked to the floor for a second, and Tony knew he’d saved something for last.

“The bond,” Loki said. “Your bond with Strange. You created it for this purpose. How do you plan on using it?”

That was a very good question.

Only problem was Tony didn’t have an answer. 

And there was no way he was hurting Stephen like he had on Titan again.  
*

The small building that served as a meeting place for the elder sorcerers was miraculously intact. It had the same smell of freshly cut wood and dug up earth as the rest of Kamar-Taj, but felt as it always had.

Like being called into the principal’s office.

“Welcome home, Stephen,” said Master Devi with what seemed to be a genuine smile. The remaining elders sat in a semi-circle, set up the same way as he’d last seen them. 

It was difficult to ignore how similar this felt to their last meeting. And how disastrously that meeting had gone. How different things could have been if they’d all just listened…

To Tony.

Himself included.

“Yes, thank you for agreeing to visit Kamar-Taj, Doctor Strange,” Master Bhattarai said. 

Stephen had to use all his willpower not to roll his eyes.

“I’m happy to answer the elders’ questions and help in any way I can,” he said and mentally awarded himself a medal and a ticker tape parade.

Tony was the grand marshal. 

“We didn’t only call you here to question you,” said Master Devi. “Master Wong told us about your scientific efforts to restore magic. We owe you a debt of gratitude.”

“But whether or not giving Tony Stark access to portal magic is an enormous mistake remains to be seen,” another hissed under his breath. 

“Tony Stark saved our universe,” Stephen said, without thinking. Like when he had punched Steve Rogers, he defended Tony as a reflex. “He saw what we refused to see: that the era of hiding in Kamar-Taj is over. As much as we might not like it, it’s time to join the world,” he said with finality, his tone daring any one of them to disagree with him.

None did.

They sat in their chairs, unmoving, but also not disagreeing. 

At this point, he'd take it.

“We only have a few questions for you, Doctor Strange,” one of the elders said. “We hardly want to take you away from New York for too long.”

Stephen sighed through his nostrils. New York, not the New York Sanctum. He didn’t bother to give this one a response.

“When Tony Stark removed you from Kamar-Taj, where did he take you?”

Stephen lifted an eyebrow. He’d been expecting questions about his actions just prior to the loss of magic, or how he and Tony had managed to create a portal using science and tech to do what magic had always done. 

He was uncertain where this response would take him. With forced confidence, he said, “To the Avengers Compound.”

“And when you were there did you come into contact with the god, Loki?”

Stephen couldn’t help the scoff this time. “I thought he was ‘the demon, Loki?’ Or is he no longer a demon because he brought back magic?”

The elders ignored his retort. “Did you come into contact with him?”

Stephen shifted on his feet. “Yes.”

“In what way?”

He flexed his wrists against his vambraces. As awful as the experience was, and as out of line Loki had been, Stephen had no desire to put Asgard at odds with Kamar-Taj. And if the elders were asking such pointed questions about Loki, they could possibly be building a case against him.

But to what end?

Lying would do him no good if Wong had already answered truthfully.

Rubbing his jaw, Stephen said, “I was in bad shape when I first got there, as I’m sure you all remember. I’d fallen about fifty feet and broke my leg.” He hesitated and recalled—in spite of that one awful incident—how consistently Loki had helped him and Tony.

“And? Speak freely, Stephen.”

The Cloak squeezed his shoulders in solidarity. “He was…upset when we first met up at the Compound. He believed that our desire to keep our order a secret is what led to the destruction of magic.”

The elders looked among themselves again, but remained quiet. One by one, they turned back to Stephen, silently commanding him to tell the whole story.

“We had words…or he did. I wasn’t in any shape to do anything. And then he…broke my jaw. It seemed he’d forgotten that even without magic, he’s still a god.”

The elders said nothing, barely moved, but something in the air seemed to change. Like Stephen was confirming something they already knew.

_Damn_

“He did help with the final product of the portal that took us to the Purple Dimension,” Stephen said. “Without his help, it’s very likely that—”

“Yes, we know all about that,” Master Bhattarai said, waving a hand through the air. “Tell us what he told the Scarlet Witch that helped her harness her power.”

He cocked an eyebrow. Loki was now a god, but Wanda was still the Scarlet Witch. If the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj went after Wanda, Stephen knew there’d be a fight. But if they went after Loki, would the Avengers defend him? 

His thoughts spiraled. What if this led to another schism in the team? They had only just gotten everyone back together. And Thanos was coming.

And the Avengers together again made Tony happy.

Things had been smoothed over with Loki, but was that enough? If there was a genuine threat against him would Steve Rogers and the others stand on their side of the line?

“Stephen?” Master Devi repeated, drawing him back.

He hated where his thoughts were taking him. “I’m not entirely sure. I was busy holding back fifty witchfinder wolves.” Through clenched teeth, he said, “Whatever he told her seemed to work. She had better control of her power in a matter of minutes.”

The atmosphere grew even darker, the elders looking between themselves and seemed to come to some sort of consensus. 

Master Devi finally stood and addressed Stephen with a smile. “Thank you for answering our questions, Stephen. And we again thank you for your contributions to the return of magic. Wong has already given testimony to your work with Doctor Stark, as well as your valiant efforts on the battlefield in the Purple Dimension. For this, you have the elders’ thanks.”

Was that really it? After everything that had happened, all they wanted from Stephen was details about Loki and to say thanks before kicking him back to New York? 

“What of Thanos?” he asked.

That name startled the arrogance out of them. For the first time since they started this, the elders all seemed to be individually human. The fatigue and grief they had undoubtedly been feeling since the destruction of magic finally became apparent in their downturned faces.

Master Devi smiled sadly at him, like she was about to answer the question of a child. “Look around you, Stephen.”

“But—”

“We will regroup,” she said. “We will rebuild. We will train new students and we will persevere.” She looked down at her knees. Stephen saw her consider her words. “We will help you and your Avengers in any way we can.”

It took a moment for the shoe to drop, for Stephen to understand that he would have no help from sorcerers who should have been on the front line. Panic washed over Stephen like an unexpected wave of cold water. 

He expected bravado, he expected to have to play mediator between his two allegiances, but he did not expect this.

He did not expect the burden of once again defending the universe against Thanos to fall on his shoulders. But looking around the room of elders who seemed so much older than they had a moment ago, he knew that’s what was happening.

He’d already done this. It seemed unfair to have to do it again.

Before he could fall into a true panic, Tony sent a warm kind of comfort through their bond. The little engine hiding behind his heart purred, calming Stephen in the best way.

“Stephen.” 

Master Devi stood in front of him. He hadn’t even noticed her moving. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder, and said, “You have our full support. Any knowledge or relic you may need, you have it. We will be with you, when you make your stand.”

Clearing his throat, Stephen nodded. He wasn’t sure if was able to produce words just yet.

“Thank you for calling me here today,” Stephen said. 

As Stephen turned to go, Master Devi said, “Oh, and Stephen.”

She waited while he paused and turned.

“Congratulations on your engagement.”

The dour faces of the elders said something completely different. A few of them nodded absently, but most remained stone-faced, allowing Master Devi’s words to stand for all of them.

There was nothing Stephen could do but nod and smile. “Thank you,” he said, then made a strategic retreat. 

Stephen left the cool, quiet of the meeting room and stepped out to the chaotic courtyard of Kamar-Taj. Cranes and bulldozers bearing ‘Stark’ on their sides were still clearing away the wreckage of the bombed barracks. 

Now that the world was stabilized from the threat the destruction of magic had posed, there was time to sort through the rubble and try to make sense of it all. All around him, there were foreign aid workers, men with hardhats and clipboards, and the roar of heavy machinery cleaning up the Empirikul’s mess.

Waiting for the mess that would come with Thanos.

The wind kicked up and it got even louder, Stephen looking up to see an SI helicopter landing, and a small horde of Tony’s lawyers exit. 

He squinted at his own thought, then looked over the group again. Each and every one of them exited a helicopter to a magical training ground that had existed for a thousand years and yet they all looked completely comfortable. 

Of course, they were lawyers. 

“Doctor Strange!” one of them yelled over the sound of the helicopter.

“Oh, no,” Stephen said, and considered casting a portal to escape.

“Graham Peterson,” he said, grabbing Stephen’s hand in a too-firm shake. Lucky for Stephen, he was wearing his gloves and Loki’s vambraces. “I work for Mr. Stark. Can you point me in the direction of the council of elders?” he asked, and Stephen had to give him credit. He said it with a completely straight face, like he didn’t find any of this ridiculous and it was all completely normal.

Stephen wondered how long he’d been working for Tony.

“Here to help them draft a permanent agreement with the UN?” he asked.

Graham nodded and gave a rehearsed smile. “Among other things.”

Poor creatures had no idea what they were getting themselves into. “Right over there,” Stephen pointed, then made a hasty retreat. “Good luck,” he muttered.

Braving the noise and chaos, Stephen took a short walk around the courtyard. The place where they’d made their stand against the Grand Imperator and lost. Many of his colleagues died here, he still wasn’t sure how many. The place was now filled with loud machinery and the smell of oil and dust and earth.

The Empirikul hadn’t destroyed their order, but they did humble it. And after enduring the elders’ controlling nature, Stephen almost didn’t know how to react to seeing them so uncertain and powerless. To give so much control over the fight against Thanos to Stephen, of all people.

He was getting lost in his thoughts again when he should be portaling home. There was so much to do to prepare. And with all that had just happened, he had to talk to Tony.

And Loki.

He looked around the courtyard one last time, searching. There wasn’t one sorcerer there. Not one. 

The Cloak again wiped Stephen’s face for him, and gave him the hug he didn't know he needed. 

“It’ll be alright, “ he said to his friend. “She’s right. We’ll rebuild and recruit. We’ve faced worse, believe it or not.” He sighed, then turned to the Cloak’s lapels. “What am I saying? Of course you know. You’ve been around far longer than I have. But now, back home.”

He cast a portal and stepped into the New York Sanctum.

One sniff and his nose twitched.

Tony had had a new door put in immediately after the wolves had torn the old one down and security around the clock while magic was dead. Stephen hadn’t been in any condition to check up on the Sanctum, and he was grateful it had been protected.

The inside of the Sanctum, however…

That was for Wong, Stephen, and their fellow sorcerers to fix. The few sorcerers and novices that had come over from Kamar-Taj to the Compound were now at the New York Sanctum. Everything was looking far better than when Stephen left it, but that wasn’t saying much.

The removal of the wolf corpses was definitely an upgrade. Though several powerful decontamination spells still hadn’t completely removed the smell.

“Wong?” he called out before the Cloak slapped him on the mouth and he realized what time it was. The skipping back and forth across continents always threw him for a loop. “Wong?” he said again quietly, in case Wong was actually asleep.

After a moment, Wong came out from the library, his face dour but not from fatigue.

“Oh, there you are. Are you alright?” Stephen asked.

Silence stretched between them for a moment before Wong nodded.

“Good. I’m just back from my meeting with the elders. If you can call it that.” Stephen walked to the kitchen, the Cloak moving off his shoulders. “It lasted all of five minutes. About half of it was admitting they have no idea how to prepare for Thanos.”

He poured water and put the kettle on. He and Wong had a lot to discuss: repairs to the Sanctum, which could be done by magical means and which would require money, the training for the novices that were staying in New York while Kamar-Taj was being reconstructed. And, of course, how were they to prepare for Thanos’ arrival.

“Not that I was truly surprised, but I have to admit I was hopeful I wouldn’t have to do everything again all by myself.” He paused and shrugged. “Well, myself and Tony.

“Believe it or not, the other half was about Loki,” he said. Wong stiffened.

“What?” Stephen asked. Wong always had a straight face, but now he looked as though he was about to give Stephen terrible news. “ _What?_ ” he insisted.

“Stephen,” he said, slowly. “Sit down. We must speak.”

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Pain flared through his hands as he clenched his fists, then forced them to relax again. With a deep breath, Stephen looked at the kettle then sank into a chair at the kitchen table. The Cloak came from the other room and landed on his shoulders. 

Wong took two cups from a cabinet and methodically prepared tea exactly the way he liked it.

“How bad?” he asked.

Wong placed the tea in front of Stephen, then sat down and stared at his hands for a moment. “I don’t know. I’m not sure what to think.”

“How long was your interview with the elders?” 

“Five hours.”

Five hours compared to five minutes. He drummed his fingers against his tea cup.

“What did you discuss?”

“You.”

A terrible feeling of dread crept inside his chest. The little engine behind his heart did its best to keep it away, but the dread remained.

“You discussed me?”

“Yes. They also asked me about Loki, but primarily they asked about you. Your actions since you’ve bonded with Stark, your relationship with Stark. Your actions prior to the destruction of magic, while we were trying to find a way to get it back, every move you made in the Purple Dimension. Everything.”

He tapped his fingers on the table, uncertain what to think.

“You think they doubt my loyalty?” he asked.

Wong scoffed. “I think you proved your loyalty during the battle at Kamar-Taj. No, I don’t think it’s that.”

“Then what? They can’t kick me out. The New York Sanctum recognizes me as its master.”

“I don’t think they want to remove you, Stephen. I think they are finally realizing how powerful you are.”

It was Stephen’s turn to scoff. He hated falling into his old arrogance, but he was confident in his skills as a sorcerer. He’d trained and studied very hard to be as good as he was. He’d proved himself against Dormammu, against Thanos, and against the Empirikul. How there could be any doubt to his competency, he couldn’t understand. 

“They asked after every spell you used in the Purple Dimension, Stephen,” Wong said. “Every single one.”

Stephen shook his head. He had no idea, not one clue as to what this could be leading to.

“At one point, we took a short break. I left to get water.” Wong shifted in his seat and laced his fingers together. “They did not realize I had returned. They were talking amongst themselves. I couldn’t hear everything clearly, but I know they were discussing the battle in the Purple Dimension.”

Stephen mentally reviewed his actions. He’d used a wide assortment of spells, but nothing that wasn’t commonly used in battle. There was nothing he could think of that would call anything he had done into question.

“And?” he asked.

“And then I heard a phrase I’ve been turning over in my head ever since,” Wong said. He looked up from the table, looking Stephen in the eye. “Stephen, they’re talking about naming a new sorcerer supreme.”

Everything became very quiet and still.

The breath Stephen had been taking came sputtering out of him. He coughed, choking on nothing but his own air. 

This couldn’t be happening. Not to him. There was no chance the elders would name him the new sorcerer supreme. It couldn’t happen.

“Stephen, are you alright?” Wong said softly, like he was far away.

His heart was trying to beat its way out of his chest and he’d broken out in a light sweat. The Cloak was fanning his face, doing its best to keep Stephen calm.

With shaking hands, he removed his gloves and wrapped his hands around his tea cup. It was just shy of too warm, but it made his hands feel better and brought him back to the present.

“There’s no way,” Stephen said.

“No? Who was the one who saved the Earth from Dormammu? Who trapped Thanos in a prison that would have lasted until the end of time had it not been for the death of magic?” Wong asked.

“Who’s always been a pain in their asses, a rule-breaker from the beginning, and engaged and bonded to someone they’re terrified of?”

“Stephen,” Wong said, firmly placing a hand down on the table. “You would be a great sorcerer supreme.”

“I really wouldn’t,” Stephen said. 

But whether he would or wouldn’t didn’t matter. What mattered was that Stephen didn’t want it.

Becoming sorcerer supreme meant the death of everything Stephen wanted with Tony.

If Stephen became sorcerer supreme that would mean the end of the life with Tony he’d been hoping for. He’d have to live at Kamar-Taj full time. The responsibility of all the sorcerers would be his. He would have to constantly be searching for threats to the multiverse. 

His life would be dedicated to magic and its protection alone.

There would be no time for a husband, a son, a life.

He’d have to leave New York, the city that he loved. He’d have to leave Tony.

And the consequences of that sort of magic… 

It was possible that his life would be extended, even more than it already had been. He would live far past Tony and Peter’s deaths, he’d be alone…

And for how long? How long would he have to live after his family died? Just the thought had him closing his eyes to hide his tears.

“No,” he said, shaking his head.. “I can’t be the sorcerer supreme.”

Wong misunderstood him. “You can. It isn’t always just about who is the most powerful. There are many aspects that come into choosing a sorcerer supreme. Power is one of them, but knowledge is another. The fact that you have a deep connection to the Avengers probably helps as well.”

Stephen shook his head. He couldn’t fathom this. He didn’t want it.

“Stephen, you can be the sorcerer supreme and still have a family,” Wong said, placing a hand on Stephen’s arm.

“How?” Stephen asked, his voice breaking. “Peter comes over for a few hours on the weekend? I see Tony whenever one of us can sneak away for a day? What kind of life is that?”

“The best life some can hope for,” Wong said. “It would be a sacrifice, but you could still have them in your life.”

Stephen shook his head, but didn’t want to argue anymore. He prayed Wong was wrong. He’d rather the elders doubt and double check Stephen before they name him their new leader. 

He would lose everything…

There was a vibration on his hip.

“A message from Mr. Stark for you, Doctor Strange,” his phone said. 

Stephen plucked it from his pocket. 

**From: Savior of the Known Universe**

**Honey, are you okay?**

Stephen took in a deep breath, forcing himself to be calm. There would be no point in panicking and terrifying Tony when he needed to sit down and explain all this to him. 

If Wong was right, then Stephen’s days of having this were numbered. There would be few trips to New York, let alone opportunities to just grab hold of Tony and cuddle in the middle of the night. Everything that they’d been working towards, the solid foundation of friendship they’d built their love on, all of it would be for nothing.

He had no idea how to explain what Wong had told him. How it really was the honor of a lifetime—of several lifetimes—and not something to take lightly. If the responsibility was given to him, he really would have no choice but to accept it. And that he would do his job with every ounce of strength he had.

But there would be no recovering from leaving Tony. No amount of putting himself into his work, or training, or creating new spells could counter not having the miracle of Tony Stark in his life.

“Stephen,” Wong said, putting a hand on his shoulder and forcing him out of those dark thoughts. 

Shaking himself, Stephen nodded. “I have to go. Talk to him.” 

Wong nodded and took a step back. With shaking hands, Stephen began to open up a portal but stopped himself. 

On shaking legs, he walked to the front door of the Sanctum and stepped outside.

Dressed in his tunic and the Cloak, people instantly recognized him. Stephen did his best to nod and smile at them, but it was all he could do to not break into a run. The sight and smell of the Village was a bittersweet ache in his heart. The sound of traffic, of people talking, the sizzle of food being cooked, of people just living their lives felt like home to him. New York was his home and had been for a long time. 

He’d always wanted to live here, and once he’d left Nebraska he had. This city was a part of him, just like Kamar-Taj. But New York was home.

He stumbled through a crosswalk, people calling him by name and asking for a picture. A few kind people must have noticed the look on his face because after a while people stopped asking. 

Eventually he ended up in a park, slumped over a bench, head in his hands.

To any other sorcerer, this would be the opportunity and honor of a lifetime. But Stephen had already saved the universe once. All he wanted was to enjoy what he had gained: a life with Tony, defending the Earth with the Avengers, defending the multiverse with his order. 

He shouldn’t have to give up his entire life. It wasn’t fair.

An echo flew by him on a soft breeze. Stephen heard the Ancient One’s voice in his head.

_It’s not all about you._

The weight on his shoulders increased tenfold. Stephen buried his head in his aching hands and choked down a sob. 

Through all the turmoil, Stephen heard his phone ping.

“Doctor Strange,” his phone said. “Mr. Stark is calling. He seems very disturbed, sir.”

Stephen took a deep breath and held it, calming himself. He didn’t want to frighten Tony any more than he had.

“Put him through.”

A soft beep and then Tony was shouting, “Stephen? Are you alright? Honey, talk to me.”

_Home_

Home is wherever Tony was. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said. “I’m in a park…somewhere.”

“Yeah, I know,” Tony said. There was a sound of metal clanking together in the background. “So does everyone else. #sadstrange is trending on Twitter right now. People are ‘at-ing’ me to call you.”

Stephen buried his head in his hands again. “Ugh.”

“Yeah,” Tony said. “It’s fine. Just come home. Whatever it is, we can figure it out together. Right?”

 _Together_ , Stephen thought. They were strongest when they were together. They were unstoppable when they were together. He’d forgotten that last time, but he wouldn’t forget again.

But that was against genocidal dictators. But against time and distance…

“Stephen?”

It would be enough. It had to be.

“Yeah,” Stephen said. “Together.” He pulled his sling ring out and said, “I’m coming home.”

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is really setting up the last arc of the story. Not very action-y, but necessary to go on. Also, glaucous_atlanticus made a great observation about how Stephen's problem is very millennial in that he'd have absolutely no work-life balance. Which, yeah, hits the nail on the head.
> 
> Let me know what you think, your feedback is wonderful!


	31. Rest Your Head For Just Five Minutes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left comments on the last chapter! I know this story is very long, but reading your kind words is so encouraging. This fandom is so kind.
> 
> Also, I'm glad everyone laughed through the angst of #sadstrange trending. Poor Stephen. He already had such a terrible day, then everyone else saw it.
> 
> In regards to this chapter, I'm going with 616 Infinity Stone logic. The MCU kinda through me for a loop in Endgame (in many ways, but I mean the stones in particular), so we won't be using that canon. That canon is bad, and it should feel bad. You don't have to have read 616 to understand the stone's logic. Loki will explain it.
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas.

Tony held Stephen's hand as they rode the elevator from his workshop up to their floor.

Outwardly, Stephen looked fine if sad, but the picture of him that went viral was a kick in the teeth. He'd just been sitting there on a park bench, looking absolutely wrecked. So yeah, Tony totally understood why #sadstrange was trending. Stephen looked like someone just died.

By the time Tony saw the post, there were a few thousand replies pleading with Tony to come get his wizard, some asking Tony to forgive whatever Stephen had done because he was obviously very sorry, and a few cursing him for doing whatever it was that had Stephen looking like that.

So yeah, the entire world knew something was wrong, but they didn’t know how Stephen felt.

Stephen wasn’t sad. Stephen was _devastated_. 

They came out of the elevator and Tony led Stephen over to the sofa, where the two of them and Peter had taken a nap just a few days ago. 

Hopefully some of the nice memories were embedded in the cushions.

“Do you need anything right now?” Tony asked him. He already knew that Stephen wasn’t hurt physically, but aside from that Tony had no idea what was wrong.

“No. Wong already plied me with tea.” He shifted on the sofa a little closer to Tony. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Tony said, starting to get up. “I can make some—”

Stephen gave a slight pull of his hand, and Tony sat back down.

“Okay,” Tony said, and resolved to be strong for whatever horror Stephen had just discovered. “Is it Thanos? Did the elders know something?”

“No,” Stephen said, then opened his mouth to try to shape an answer but none came. His hands were trembling more than normal, but Tony only knew because he was holding one. “I, um. I went to Kamar-Taj, met with the elders.”

“Yeah,” Tony said, resisting the urge to shake whatever it was out of Stephen.

Outwardly, Stephen looked…terrible. His face was pale, and his hands were shaking far more than normal, but the bond felt like a tornado had swept through. Tony had no idea what could have shaken Stephen so badly, but it wasn’t difficult for Tony to imagine a hundred different scenarios. What if something was wrong with magic again? Or maybe they hadn’t fixed it right the first time. Was that a thing? That sounded like it could be a thing.

_Damn it, Loki, you had one job!_

Or maybe they learned something terrible about Thanos. Something that really would make it impossible to kill him. What if their bond wasn’t enough, what if nothing they could do would be enough?

Stephen shook his hand, snapping him out of his spiraling thoughts. “It’s not Thanos.”

“Oh,” Tony said. But if it wasn’t Thanos, what could possibly have Stephen this upset? The elders were their own brand of bullshit, but they at least seemed to respect Stephen. 

_Kinda_

Oh, what if that was it? Tony had sent over a small army of contractors and construction workers in the past day. He’d known he was treading on thin ice, but Kamar-Taj was the front line of the multiverse. They needed to be up and running again as soon as possible. 

But what if those asshole elders hadn’t seen it that way? What if they officially got tired of Tony’s bullshit? What if they were kicking Stephen out of their order and onto the street?

_What if they were making him choose?_

“Are they kicking you out?” Tony asked, cutting off whatever Stephen had been about to say. “Cause if they are, that’s bullshit. You’re ten times the sorcerer than any of them. I’ve seen you in action, Doc. You’re not just great at magic, you’re great at fighting and strategizing. That’s worth way more than them, sitting in their badly ventilated little rooms with uncomfortable chairs.”

“No, Tony—”

The more Tony thought about it, the angrier he became. “And where do they get off kicking you out for saving the universe? They know the entire reason you got me in the first place was because of Titan?”

“Tony…”

“And we’re a package deal!” Tony said, waving a hand through the air. “They can’t just say they don’t want you around anymore because I’m an asshole. That’s not fair! And you love me. Are they actually trying to start some Romeo and Juliet bullshit? Because this is how you get Romeo and Juliet bullshit! And that never turns out well!”

For the first time since he’d got home, Stephen looked something other than despondent. The smallest smile graced his face and he asked, “Tony, do you think they’re asking me to choose between you and Kamar-Taj?”

Okay, maybe he’d gotten a little carried away. “Are they?”

Stephen’s smile grew before it fell off his face completely. “I suppose in a way, they might be.”

“Oh, God,” Tony said, already imagining the worst case scenario. 

_Full on war with the wizards._

“They can’t steal you from me,” he said, pointing a finger in Stephen’s face. “No. Not allowed. You’re _my_ bondmate. Those are _my_ butterflies. They can’t have them.”

Stephen took his hand out of Tony’s and buried his face in it. 

“Okay, let me start over,” Stephen said, muffled. “I’m sorry, I know your mind runs away from you. I should have just said it.”

Fighting the urge to pull his hair out, Tony said, “You could say it now? Cause it takes fifteen minutes for me to get to Kamar-Taj, and I am not above fighting old people.”

Stephen nodded and put his hand back into Tony’s. 

“They aren’t kicking me out, and they aren’t asking me to choose between Kamar-Taj and you.” He swallowed once and said, “If Wong is right, and he usually is, they’re considering making me their leader.

“They’re thinking of naming me the new sorcerer supreme.”

Tony sat back into the sofa and turned the thought around in his head. Being the leader of anything came with headaches and baggage, of course, but something about this seemed different.

“So…you’d be the main guy. The big cheese. The Tony Stark.”

Stephen chuckled but his eyes remained sad. “Yeah, I’d be the Tony Stark.”

“Okay…that sounds like a good thing? Why is this not a good thing?”

Stephen shifted in his seat. “You have to understand—”

“Tony!”

Pepper’s voice rang through the ceiling speakers.

Tony and Stephen both jumped about a foot in the air. “Pepper?” Tony shouted. “You okay?”

“Sorry, boss, but Ms. Potts is on the ‘put right through’ list,” said Friday.

“It’s fine, Friday. Pepper, what’s going on?”

“Tony, are you okay?” Pepper asked, her tone a mix of concern and anger. “Are you physically fine?”

“Uh, yeah,” Tony said, frowning. “I’m at the Compound. Everything’s fine. Or…well, everything is what passes as fine around here.”

“Oh, good,” she sighed. “I was so worried.” A heartbeat passed, then she asked, “What did you do?” Pepper asked.

“What did I do?” Tony asked. “I…don’t know? What did I do? I’ve been here since we got back from Purple Squid Land. What are you talking about?”

“I saw that picture of Stephen,” Pepper said, and Tony heard the barely continued fury in her voice. “He looks devastated, Tony. What happened?”

“Oh, hell,” Stephen said under his breath. “Did everyone see that picture?”

“It’s currently at two million likes, one point five million retweets,” Friday said.

Stephen groaned and put his face into his hands.

“Stephen? Are you okay?” Pepper asked.

“I’m fine, Pepper,” Stephen said, then seemed to reconsider. “Or what passes as fine around here.”

“Oh, thank God. I didn’t know what to think when I saw…” She paused for a moment, then asked, “Tony, do you want to put out a press release? I know this isn’t important in the grand scheme of things, but this has kind of taken over the internet.”

“Not…right now,” Tony said, then took Stephen’s hand again. “Look, we’re kinda in the middle of something here, Pep. We’ll handle the PR stuff later, okay?”

She was quiet for a moment, then said, “Okay. Let me know if I can help,” then ended the call.

Tony leaned back into the sofa with a sigh. This was the last thing they needed. He needed the public’s confidence in order to convince world leaders to go on red alert. Having the support of a billion people went a long way.

And the people loved him and Stephen together. Which was really nice, actually. Maybe they all saw exactly what Tony saw.

“Tony…” 

“I’m sorry, honey,” he said, and gave his hand a kiss. “Okay,” he said and got his head back in the game. “So your order wants to name you president.”

“Sorcerer supreme,” Stephen said.

“Right, that’s what I said,” Tony said. “Why is that a bad thing?” Tony thought of what might have happened if Stephen had been in charge when the Empirikul attacked. How different things might have been if there had just been a person who would listen to reason. 

“Wouldn’t this mean you have more control? Change some of the stuffy old ways, keep the stuff that works?” Tony asked.

Stephen ran a finger along the edge of the Cloak for a moment. He opened his mouth, then closed it. With a light squeeze of Tony’s hand, he finally said, “It would change everything.”

Tony considered the way Kamar-Taj had kept itself secret for centuries, and how the world could have benefited from their wisdom. He thought of how Stephen had been the one to protect the Time Stone from Thanos’ cronies, how he’d been the one who thought to use it on Titan in the first place.

He thought of how smart and powerful Stephen was and had only one thing to say.

“Good.”

Stephen looked like he’d been slapped.

“What?” Tony asked, not sure where he’d misstepped. “Look, I understand tradition. Tradition is great, it’s wonderful. It has its place. But the world’s changed, and Kamar-Taj dragged its feet so much it went to hell and almost didn’t make it back.”

Stephen took his hand back. Put his elbows on his knees and fiddled with his fingers.

“We came back because of you, Tony. Not me.”

“I beg to—”

“Beg all you want,” Stephen said. “It’s true.” He leaned into Tony’s side, letting their bodies press against each other . “But that’s not what I meant.

“I meant everything would change…for me. For us.”

Tony wrapped an arm around Stephen. 

“The sorcerer supreme isn’t just our leader, Tony. It isn’t just a job that someone can decline. Being the sorcerer supreme means the elders have decided I am the one with the greatest skills, greatest power, and the greatest control over magic.”

His hands were shaking more now. Tony leaned closer, like if he could get close enough to Stephen it would somehow stop the panic that was overwhelming him. 

“Can’t you turn it down?” Tony asked, but regretted it the second the question left his mouth. The look Stephen told him what Tony already knew.

“Yeah,” Stephen said, talking down to the floor. “Tony, they hate me. If they’re actually talking about making me sorcerer supreme…I think that makes it pretty definitive. How could I be the most powerful sorcerer alive and turn down the responsibility?” 

Tony nodded and swallowed down the hope that maybe this could be something that could be avoided.

“Talk to me,” Tony said. “What would this mean for you?”

“All responsibility for Kamar-Taj would be mine,” he said, his voice a harsh whisper. “I would need to constantly monitor the multiverse for threats. I would be responsible for training sorcerers, for leading them to meet these threats, and potentially taking them to their deaths.”

“Shh,” Tony said, running his hand along Stephen’s shoulder. His back was so tense it was shaking.

“All of it would fall on me,” Stephen whispered in a hiss. “And if I’m being honest, that’s not the worst part. The work, I could handle. I _am_ a powerful sorcerer, I know. I’m not afraid of the work, I’m _not_. That’s not why…” 

He trailed off and gestured to his face, to the rest of him, still shaking and overwhelmed. Tony wrapped an arm around him and just held on.

“I’d have to leave New York, Tony.” 

Tony felt his heart fall. Now he understood where all this was coming from. The idea of New York without Stephen… He’d just got him and now they were going to take him away?

“I’d have to leave this life. You and Peter. I’d live in Kamar-Taj full time. My entire life would be dedicated to my order, to magic.”

With eyes brimmed with tears, Stephen turned to Tony. “So the life that I thought we would have together is over. Everything that I endured…everything we went through together…” 

Tony had no idea what to say. He just held on to Stephen like he was about to slip away.

“After Dormammu, I savored peace.” Stephen shook out of Tony’s hold, rose from the sofa, and began to pace. “I died facing him, Tony. So many times.”

Tony closed his eyes at the reminder.

“I knew the peace I found at the New York Sanctum wouldn’t last.” Tony felt the air move around him when Stephen and the Cloak turned abruptly. Tony opened his eyes.

“I can’t say it was everything I ever wanted because it wasn’t. Everything was still so new and I’d lost so much,” Stephen said, looking like Tony like he was pleading with him to understand. “But it was something I didn’t know I needed. I studied and trained, and when Thanos came I was ready.”

“You were,” Tony said. “You were wonderful, Stephen. Without you, Thanos would have wiped out half the universe.”

Tony watched Stephen pace through the living room, looking like he was getting lost in his own thoughts.

“Tell me about it, baby.”

Tony smiled, met Stephen’s eyes to try to draw him out of this storm.

“Thanos. Seeing fourteen million futures.” He looked at his shoes, then back at Tony. “Falling in love with you with no hope of you ever returning my feelings.”

Tony couldn’t watch this play out anymore. He got up, wrapped his arms around Stephen, and walked him back to the sofa. Carefully, he laid down on his back, adjusting and moving himself so Stephen could lie face-down on his chest. 

“And how’d that work out for you, Doc?”

Stephen breathed a soft laugh and for a moment they just laid there, Tony running his fingers through Stephen’s hair.

“I thought I was through with sacrificing everything,” Stephen said. “And I’d finally found someone. Someone who loved me. And a child I never thought I’d have. I had everything.”

Like a ship on a stormy sea, Tony held Stephen as he rocked and shook and threatened to sink. When he started shaking, he held on even tighter. Placed little kisses on his head, hummed and sent the happiness feelings he could through their bond.

And while Stephen was getting through a breakdown, Tony said goodbye to a few things as well. 

This wasn’t the hand he wished they’d been dealt, but it was the one they had. If Stephen was right—and Tony had no doubt he was—then there was no fighting it. It would be far better to accept it, lean into it, and make the best he could with it.

He’d done that with his bonding with Stephen and look how that turned out.

Tony thought of New York, of Pepper casually dropping in, of Rhodey driving to the Compound on weekends, of Peter walking in on them doing their taxes, and said goodbye.

Not to the people. But to the _casual_. Because that was done with.

Oh, well. He was Tony Stark. He’d bend the world to his will.

After a few minutes, he finally said, “You still have us. You haven’t lost everything, Stephen.”

Stephen shook his head.

“I’m serious. So, you’re going to be the sorcerer supreme. The most powerful sorcerer in our universe.”

“Yes,” Stephen said into Tony’s chest.

“So I imagine you’d be able to say…approve of a workshop for a lowly Muggle engineer to be built at Kamar-Taj?”

Stephen shifted and looked up.

“Maybe some slightly more modern digs as a main house? A guest room with a big movie library for visiting spiders?”

Stephen shook his head. “Tony, you can’t possibly want to live at Kamar-Taj. You love New York.”

“I do,” he agreed. “But I love you more.” He frowned. “Did you really think you were going to get rid of me this easily? You do realize what ‘married’ means, right?”

“But…your company. And Peter?”

“Okay, the company is run by Pepper. If they need me for something, I’m sure my handy portal sorcerer would be willing to get me to and from New York and back for dinner.”

“Breakfast. There’s a twelve-hour time difference, Tony.” Stephen rolled his eyes and sat up. “Even if you’re willing to go to New York for meetings, they’d have to be extremely early or extremely late. And what about Peter?”

“What about Peter?” Tony asked.

“I—I feel like I just got Peter—” Stephen said, then cut off with a choked cry.

“Shh, shh, honey, no,” Tony said, then took Stephen into his arms. “There’s no way you’re going to get rid of that little spider, Stephen. He calls you Doctor Dad.

“Listen, I think we both need to take a minute and breath, Doc. Bottom line is, everything is negotiable, and we can make anything work.”

“You’d be giving up so much,” Stephen said. “And for what?”

“You,” Tony said, then ran his thumb over Stephen’s cheek. “Carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders is part of the hero game. It’s not anything new…to either of us.”

Stephen took a deep breath, exhaled, and looked Tony over head to foot. Tony let himself be inspected, like somehow Stephen didn’t know that he was telling the truth.

But Tony knew all about living with disappointment for so long. After a while, you come to expect it. You don’t expect to have anything you really want handed to you.

That was okay. He could be patient.

“You’re right,” Stephen said softly. “I know you’re right. I know this is what I signed up for. I know it.” He shook his head and bit down on his lips. “But it shouldn’t be like this. We shouldn’t have to give up so much.”

“No,” Tony said. “I shouldn’t have had to run that missile away from New York and into a wormhole,” Tony said, a chill running up his back. “Give myself nightmares for years.” He shook his head. “You shouldn’t have had to face Dormammu like you did. You shouldn’t have had to endure watching fourteen million futures.”

“You shouldn’t have had to bond your soul to a man you hardly knew,” Stephen said with a sad smile.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “But that’s the game. The sacrifice play. It’s what it’s all about. We keep thinking we’re done, that this is it, but… Maybe it never is. Maybe we just have to keep sacrificing over and over because that’s the hero’s story.”

“I want out of the story.”

“No, you don’t,” Tony said, holding his hand.

Stephen looked down at their joined hands. “No, I don’t.”

“Sacrifice is the name of the game. But Stephen, you aren’t going to sacrifice me. It’ll be hard, but we’ll make it work. I promise.”

Stephen stared Tony down like he didn’t believe him. Or maybe like he was afraid to believe him. Like he was being offered a feast on a platter when he’d been convinced he would starve.

Eventually, he sighed and brought Tony’s hand to his thigh. “Okay. It’ll be hard at first, I’m sure. But…we’ll manage.”

“We’ll do way more than manage, Doc. We’ll thrive. We’ll be the greatest heroes of all time.” He leaned back into the sofa and marveled. “Hey,” he said, then waited for Stephen to look at him.

“You’re going to be sorcerer supreme.”

A small smile graced Stephen’s face as he finally seemed to believe what Tony was saying. That they could find a balance, that they could still be together, be a family. 

And Stephen could be the most powerful sorcerer in the universe.

He chuckled in shock a little, like he was finally realizing what all this meant. “Yeah, I’m going to be sorcerer supreme.” 

“Exactly!” Tony shouted, hands in the air. “What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing, that can’t be negotiated I supposed, except…” Stephen drifted off and the smile fell off his face again.

_Loneliness_

“Stephen, baby what’s—”

“Hail, friends!” Thor exclaimed as he walked into the room.

“Thor!” Tony shouted at the _extremely_ loud greeting. “What are you doing, man?”

“I was concerned about Stephen, of course,” Thor said, gesturing to Stephen who was trying to hide under a pillow. “The picture I saw of him reminded me of myself so often of late.” He sniffed and said, “It is no shame for a warrior to weep for his fallen friends. Or to feel sorrow for tomorrow.”

“Yeah, that’s not—” Tony said, then stopped when he realized Stephen might not want to let the cat out of the bag just yet.

Sitting up and getting his hair back in order, Stephen said, “The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj will not be assisting in an official capacity in the fight against Thanos. What you saw was a momentary feeling of dread that was unfortunately caught on camera.”

“That is unfortunate,” Thor said, nodding, his face grave. “I’ve come to value magic in battle in recent years. Perhaps they may change their minds?”

Taking the out, Stephen nodded. 

“Now, that we’re on the topic, the rest of the Avengers would like to know our strategy against Thanos,” Thor said. “I admit, I would also like to know.”

“Right, yeah, meeting, strategy, talk to Steve, ugh,” Tony said, and buried his head in his hands. He still had no idea what kind of strategy they could possibly use against Thanos. He could alert the militaries of the Earth all day long, but he doubted any of their firepower could destroy him. 

And what Loki had said to him about the bond lingered in the back of his mind…

“I’ll call a meeting,” Tony said. “What time is it? Midnight?”

“It’s eight in the morning, boss,” said Friday.

Tony frowned. “Really? Friday, when’s the last time I ate?”

“Friday, can you please order breakfast,” Stephen said, giving Tony an exasperated look. “Enough for all the Avengers. And please call a meeting. An hour.”

“You got it, Doctor Strange.”

“Don’t look at me like that,” Tony said. “When’s the last time _you_ ate?”

Stephen opened his mouth, then snapped it shut.

“Uh huh.”

Suddenly, a heavy hand fell on Stephen’s shoulder.

“Regardless of the work ahead of us,” Thor said, “I am here if you would like to talk.”

To Tony’s surprise, Stephen paused for a moment before saying very sincerely, “Thank you, Thor.”

“Thanks for stopping by, buddy,” Tony said, ushering him out the door. Or at least trying to. Pretty difficult to move Thor if he didn’t want to move.

“Thor,” Stephen said from the sofa. “May I ask you a question?”

“Of course,” Thor said softly. He resisted Tony’s ushering and sat on the sofa next to Stephen. “How can I be of help to you, my friend?”

Stephen twisted his fingers in his lap so hard Tony feared for his mobility and pain levels later. Eventually, the Cloak took his hands in its folds and kept them still. 

Stephen didn’t fight it. “Your human friends. You outlive them all, every time.”

Thor nodded, but seemed confused as to where this was going.

So was Tony.

“How do you accept it?” Stephen asked.

Thor gave him the saddest smile Tony had ever seen. He looked upward, like he was making eye contact with someone unseen. Then he said, “It hasn’t happened yet. I’ve known mortals before, of course, but this is the first time in my life I’ve truly befriended them.”

“Oh,” Stephen said sadly.

“Yes,” Thor said, dropping his gaze down to his hands. “The only thing I can think to do, the only thing in my power is to see that you enter Valhalla. There, I know you will be happy and that I will join you someday. And when I do join you, we will feast together forever.”

Stephen smiled and nodded, let his head fall to his chest. Tony had no idea what prompted that question, but had a feeling he wouldn’t like it.

“Thanks for coming by, Thor,” Tony said. 

“Always,” Thor said. “Please tell me if I can be of any assistance. And I do mean that, Tony,” Thor said, gesturing to Stephen.

“Thanks, buddy.”

Tony walked back over to the sofa and put his arms around Stephen. He was shaking badly. Tony held him as tight as he could just to keep him from vibrating off this plane of existence.

“Stephen?” 

“The magic that the sorcerer supreme practices…” Stephen looked up and into Tony’s eyes. They were red-rimmed and wet. “It can lead to an unnaturally long life.”

It took a few minutes for Tony to understand what that meant. 

When the shoe finally did drop, it dropped hard. “Oh,” he said.

Stephen nodded. “Maybe everything else we can work around. We can have Peter over on weekends, sneak away to a dinner in New York every once in a while. Invite Pepper and Rhodey over for drinks. But…I have no desire to live for centuries after you and Peter die.”

Tony couldn’t fathom what Stephen had just said. 

“I don’t want any part of that,” Stephen said.

Neither did Tony. Death was what gave life meaning. Tony didn’t want to die young. Now that he had Stephen and Peter, he wanted a nice, long life. He wanted to leave behind a legacy for the world and a million memories and eyes crinkled from laughing. 

But what would Stephen’s life be like if everyone he loved died around him? If new people he met went in and out of his life like the wind?

Tony couldn’t even bear the thought of it. He wrapped his arms around Stephen and held on. Like he had the power to stop it.

“Is it for sure? Do you have to use weird vampire magic? Can you like…make a magic substitute? Diet magic? Just one calorie?”

“I don’t know for sure,” Stephen said. “But there might not be a way around it. And I don’t want to live for so long I see Peter die. It’s not right. I should go first.”

“I don’t—I—” Tony really hated this. Stephen didn’t deserve this. After all he’d been through, after all he had done for their entire universe, he didn’t need to be tortured like this. 

“Come here,” he said. “Come closer.” Stephen sat on Tony’s lap, his legs wrapped around Tony’s waist. They sat like that for a moment, just holding onto each other.

“Tony…”

“Shh, baby. It’s going to be okay. We’ll figure it out.”

“How? What if we can’t figure this out?”

“Then—”

But what could Tony possibly do? How could he confront this when he could barely fathom it? Just the idea of living for hundreds of years was barely conceivable, at least for someone like Stephen. Tony needed to say something, do something to assure Stephen that this wouldn’t happen, that he wouldn’t be left alone.

_Step up, Stark!_

“I—um—I—” Tony stuttered out, but he had nothing. He grasped at straws, tried to think of something, anything to give Stephen any kind of lifeline.

Stephen adjusted his hold, the cold of Loki’s vambraces sending a chill down Tony’s neck.

“Loki,” Tony said, finally finding something and grabbing on. “His magic is different from yours, right? Maybe he might have an idea.”

Stephen leaned back so he could look at Tony’s face. “The fifteen-hundred-year old god might know how to solve the problem of longevity?”

Well, when he put it that way…

“I don’t know, baby,” Tony said. “But I know magic is really big, and something I know almost nothing about. But I do know that Loki’s been around for a long time, and if he doesn’t know, maybe he can point you in the right direction.”

And if he didn’t then Tony would help Stephen in any way he could. He knew if it were the other way around, Tony would hate the idea of outliving all his family and friends. And if Stephen didn’t want that, then Tony would do everything he could to help.

“We have time,” he whispered into Stephen’s ear. “There’s nothing we can’t do if we’re together. We brought magic back, we put the Avengers back together, we’ll kill Thanos.” He learned back and kissed Stephen deeply. When he pulled away, Stephen’s eyes were still closed.

“We can handle this, too,” Tony said. “Okay?”

A full body shudder ran through Stephen. Tony watched as he nodded, and put away his fear. Saw him tuck it under every issue they were currently dealing with to be handled later.

“Okay,” he said. “We’ll figure it out together. After Thanos.”

“Thank you,” Tony said, kissing his hands. “Are you going to be okay?”

He felt calmer than he had before. Stephen nodded. “I don’t like it, but we really don’t have time to work on this right now. We need to see to Thanos.”

“Agreed,” Tony said. “And speaking of Thanos…” He weighed exactly how he should say this, but after a moment just went with his gut. “I was talking to Loki earlier…”

“Oh, God.”

“Yeah, don’t let him hear you say that. He thinks we should use the bond.”

Stephen went absolutely quiet, then he wrapped arms around Tony again. But it felt different this time. This time instead of Stephen accepting comfort from Tony, it felt as though Stephen wanted to protect him.

“Stephen?”

“Yes?”

Tony fidgeted underneath him. “Well, what do you think? He has a point. The entire reason we bonded in the first place was to defeat Thanos. Now he’s back. Maybe we can finish the job.”

_Fear_

_Apprehension_

_Concern_

“Stephen?” Tony asked, because this was new. “I know it’s not going to be easy, but we need to talk about this. He’s coming, and we’re running out of time.”

Stephen nodded and stood up. 

“You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Stephen said. “Or what ‘passes as fine around here,’” they both said at the same time. 

Putting his hands on his hips, Stephen said, “You’re right. I’ll go to the meeting, then head to the Sanctum, do some research and see what we already know about the bond. Go from there.”

Tony nodded. “Okay. Maybe let a few people see you not looking like someone just kicked your puppy?”

“Oh, by the Vishanti,” Stephen said, and put his face in his hands again.

“Don’t worry, honey,” Tony said, kissing his cheek, “I’d never kick your puppy.”

 

 

Walking into the conference room in the Compound felt like walking into a business breakfast. Stephen half-expected to see his old hospital’s chairman sitting at the table. Instead, it sat the Avengers preparing for war over pancakes, minus Bruce, Rhodey, and Peter. The room was well-lit with floor-to-ceiling windows, and there was enough food on the table to feed all of Kamar-Taj. 

Stephen did feel somewhat better after having spoken with Tony. The fear he’d felt at hearing he’d be the new sorcerer supreme was still there, but thanks to years of being a neurosurgeon and a sorcerer he was able to rise above it.

Or bury it, more like. Deep down where he wouldn’t have to deal with. There was enough to contend with without the idea of having his life be upended and his death delayed by a thousand years.

Looking around the room, he mostly put everything regarding being the next sorcerer supreme to the back of his mind. There wouldn’t be a need for concern about balancing his work and life if he died fighting Thanos.

Taking a deep breath, he greeted everyone with a grunt and sat down.

“What is this?” Loki asked, holding up a round sausage patty. “Do you not have meat for breakfast here?”

“It _is_ meat, asshole,” Clint said, plucking it from his hand, taking a bite, then handing it back. “And Stark bought it so it’s actually pretty good.”

Loki looked like someone had just slapped him in the face. Thor took the remainder of the patty and wolfed it down.

“It’s fine, brother,” Thor said. “And there’s more than enough for even your appetite. Here, I will make you a plate. Sit down.” 

“Good morning, everyone!” Tony said, clapping his hands together. “Everyone getting enough to eat?”

“Coffee first, Tony,” Natasha said, leaning back in her chair with a grin. “Can’t plan for the end of the world without it.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Tony said. “Now, everyone get your coffee, get some food in you. This is a strategizing meeting.” He looked around and asked, “Who are we missing?”

“Bruce, Peter, and Rhodey,” Natasha said.

“Rhodey’s pleading our case in Washington, so he won’t be here,” Tony said.

“Oh?” Stephen asked. “How’s it going over there?”

“Well, the president’s mad because her house is about halfway sunk into a swamp, and that’s basically all you need to know in order to understand the current state of Washington.”

“The Vishanti be with Rhodey, then.”

“What about Bruce?” Tony asked. “I know Peter’s barely waking up, but we need Bruce.” He took out his phone and started texting.

Stephen thought his hands might be shaking from more than just nerves and nerve damage, so he picked up a breakfast sandwich and dug in. About two bites in, a grape was flung his way.

“Hey, Strange,” Scott stage-whispered. Loudly. “You okay, man? I saw that picture on Twitter. You looked like someone killed your dog.”

“Seriously,” Barton said, as he was putting together a breakfast sandwich. “You look a lot better, man. I don’t know about a dog, though. I thought maybe Tony’d ditched you.”

Stephen held his head high and his face as stone-cold as possible. He wouldn’t dignify that remark at all, especially since it was so far from the truth.

Clint laughed at his own joke, then took a bite of his sandwich…or tried to.

“You’re right, Barton,” Loki said, taking a bite of the stolen sandwich. “The breakfast meats here are tasty. It was mostly the shape that threw me off, you understand.”

Wanda held Clint back, fascinated. “How did you take it from him like that? Did you create a portal to steal it? Or did you just summon it in a way we couldn’t see?”

“We’ll go over that in your next lesson,” Loki said to her. “A little bit of mischief can go a long way.”

“Friday, can we see if Bruce is on his way?” Tony asked. “And maybe check if Peter is awake.”

“He woke a few minutes ago, boss,” she said. “He’s currently in a flame war with Twitter users accusing you of being unfaithful to Doctor Strange.”

Stephen sighed and buried his face in his hands. “Tell him to stop, Friday, please. We’re all here waiting for him.”

“Sure, Doc.”

“Wait a minute, who’s accusing me of cheating on Stephen?” Tony muttered, pulling out his phone.

“Strange,” Steve said, putting his fork down for a moment. “I hate to pry, but what happened? That picture looked…”

“Bad,” Scott said. “You look like you just watched Old Yeller.”

Stephen’s face twisted in disgust. “There’s a line, Lang.”

“We’re eating, Scott,” Sam said. “I don’t want to cry into my eggs.”

“You’re right,” Scott said, hands up. “My bad.”

Steve looked over at Stephen again. “Strange?”

Damn whoever took that picture. And damn himself for forgetting he’d left anonymity behind the second he started dating Tony. “The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj are rebuilding,” he said, repeating his stock answer. “We will come back, but we don’t have the resources to aid the Avengers in the fight against Thanos,” Stephen said. “That picture caught a momentary feeling of dread.”

“You don’t say,” Natasha said.

“So…we’re on our own then?” Steve asked. “Us and whatever militaries of the world can help us.”

Stephen nodded.

“That’s bullshit. We just helped them clean up their own mess and this is how they repay us,” Clint said.

“We lost many sorcerers,” Wong said, as he walked into the room. “We lost our homes. The London and Hong Kong Sanctums did not fare as well as the New York Sanctum did.” He glared at Clint and said, “One must get one’s house in order first before anything else.”

Clint quieted at that, and took another bite of his pancake.

“Okay, before we officially get started, does anyone else feel weird planning the fight against the ultimate evil in this room? It just feels very white collar,” Scott said, looking around. “I feel like I’m about to have my year-end review.”

“This is the war room, Scott,” Tony said, handing out Stark Pads to everyone. “It’s designed to provide as much information in as comfortable an environment as possible.”

“It doesn’t look like a war room,” Scott muttered.

Tony gave a deep sigh. “Friday, can we make his place a little more Strangelove?”

“That what you’re calling it?” Natasha quipped.

“Ha ha,” Tony said, then raised his arms as the lights in the room dimmed, the table they were eating on turned a shiny black, and the windows were blacked out and replaced with maps of the world with marked military bases.

“This more Peter Sellers for you?” Tony asked.

“I do not like this,” Thor said around his eggs.

“Yeah, I’m kinda scared now,” Scott said.

“Well, I’m not changing it back. Okay,” Tony said, clapping his hands together again and finally sitting down. Stephen spooned some spinach quiche onto a plate and put it in front of him. 

Tony took the bait.

“Okay, we all know why we’re here,” he said, then took a bite. “There are now five Infinity Stones on Earth, and we know Thanos is coming. This meeting is to decide not only how to defend the Earth but determine the best way to kill this bastard once and for all.”

“Aside from the people in this room, what resources do we have?” asked Steve.

“The collective militaries of the Earth,” Tony said, putting down his fork. “Whether they want to drag their feet or not, they’ll all come around when Thanos’ flag ship shows up.”

Stephen schooled his face to something between stern and inquisitive when he was inwardly railing. Earth’s technology wouldn’t hold up against Thanos’. 

“The sorcerers of Kamar-Taj will not help in an official capacity, but individual sorcerers will come,” Wong said. “I’ve spoken to the sorcerers staying at the New York Sanctum. They are all willing to help.”

There were ten people staying at the New York Sanctum. Ten sorcerers against the mightiest army the universe had ever seen.

“Some friends we made from space are on their way,” Tony said. “So that’s one ship full of assholes and a hundred Starbursts.”

“Star Blasters?” Thor asked.

“Yeah, that’s what I said.”

“Okay,” Steve said, making notes on his tablet. “What exactly is a Star Blaster?”

“A small one-person fighter,” Loki said.

The silence around the room was sudden and absolute. A heaviness that hadn’t been present a moment ago fell on their shoulders. Stephen watched as every Avenger seemed to understand exactly what they were up against.

“So…Star Wars,” Sam said. “This is literally Star Wars. A bunch of guys in tiny planes going up against the Death Star.”

That…was actually a very apt comparison. 

“Kinda, yeah,” Tony said. “We just need to find our exhaust port. That’s why we’re here.”

“Okay, well this is a great start,” Steve said, sitting up straight and clearing his throat. “Having the world’s militaries on high alert is obviously the best way to go.”

“Rhodey’s working on it, Cap,” Tony said.

“Right,” Steve said. “The way I see it, we already have one advantage that we didn’t have the last time we faced him.”

Stephen and Tony’s eyes met briefly across the table. Tony reached out to take Stephen’s hand.

Stephen gave him a fork and nudged the plate closer.

“There are five Infinity Stones on Earth,” Steve said. “So there’s only one that’s available to him.”

“The Soul Stone,” Stephen said. “On Vormir. We have all the others.”

“Okay, so what’s to stop us from just destroying them?” Clint asked. “Take away the thing he wants so bad.”

“We’d have to find something more powerful than they are to destroy them,” Loki said. “The Stones cannot will themselves out of existence.” 

“When we were in Wakanda, we had the thought of Wanda destroying the Mind Stone to save the Vision,” Steve said.

Loki looked horrified.

“It wasn’t necessary, thank God,” Wanda said. 

“It also wouldn’t have worked,” Loki said. “Your magic comes from the Mind Stone. You cannot use one stone to destroy another. They won’t allow that.”

“Allow?” Clint asked.

“Yes, allow. They might not be completely sentient, but they aren’t just mindless rocks either,” Loki said.

“Okay, what about getting these stones off-planet. How about that?” Sam asked.

“Let’s hear it,” Tony said, munching on some toast.

“That might work. We still have the Space and Power Stone,” Natasha said. “Why don’t we just hide them in another universe so he can never find them?”

“Thanos already knows where they are,” Thor said. He looked to Loki, his eyes some mix between anger and sadness. “He wouldn’t need to get access to the Stones. All he would have to do is tear the world apart and we would give them to him.”

“Okay, I’ve got the best hiding place, and I’m not talking about hiding the Stones in a sock drawer,” Scott said. “What about the Quantum Realm? We could hide everything in there.”

“I had the Space Stone hidden in my pocket dimension,” Loki muttered, his chin perched on one hand. “There was no way he would have been able to access it. Not even by killing me. It would have stayed hidden forever.”

“What happened?” Steve asked.

Loki dropped his eyes to the table, but Thor put a heavy hand on his shoulder. “My brother could not bear to see me tortured. He sacrificed his life to save me from Thanos.”

“He’s still alive,” said Clint.

“I got better,” said Loki with a grin. “My point is, there is no point in hiding the stones now that he knows where they are. He would simply tear apart the earth and destroy everything we care for to get them.”

“We can try,” Steve said. “Strange, with your portals. Is it possible you could take it somewhere he wouldn’t be able to find them?”

“Listen to me,” Loki said, slamming his hand down on the table. “You have not met this beast. His life’s goal has been the destruction of half of all life in the universe. He came incredibly close to attaining that goal once. He’s on his way to do it again. If we hide the Stones, he will simply torture one of us until another gives up the location.”

Silence fell on them again as they thought about what Loki had to say.

“We could make a pact,” Scott said. “To not give in. I mean, it seems cold, sure, but we all—”

“What if he threatened to destroy the entire Earth?” Loki said. “Because he would. Without a second thought.”

“He killed his own daughter to get a stone,” Stephen said. “Hiding the stones isn’t an option.”

They were quiet for another moment. 

“So we need to go on the offensive,” Steve said, then paused and looked at his tablet. “Well, we’ll have enough small fighters that the Avengers should be able to concentrate our forces on Thanos himself.”

“With what?” Loki asked, face in his hands. “A shield? A bow?”

“And my axe!” Thor shouted, throwing Stormbreaker onto the table. “I think you forget, brother, that this weapon was designed to kill Thanos.”

Loki’s eyes flitted between Stephen and Wanda before he leaned back in his chair and stayed quiet.

“And now the question of getting close enough to use it,” Steve said.

Loki looked down the table towards Stephen. With a smirk, there was a small flash of light and then Loki left a clone sitting down at the table while he gestured at Stephen to follow him out of the room.

His magic was far more showy than Loki’s, so Stephen just excused himself.

In a side room off the main conference area, Loki was pacing.

“I couldn’t stand listening to those idiots talk about things they have no idea about for one more moment.”

“It’s not their fault,” Stephen said, hearing the exhaustion in his own voice. “They’re trying their best.”

“Their best will get half the universe destroyed.” Loki crossed his arms and looked Stephen dead in the eye. “I spoke with Stark earlier. I told him that no amount of fire power is going to win this battle. It’ll be magic and magic only.”

“You think I don’t know that? It was magic last time as well. _My_ magic. While you were trying to hide your precious tesseract, I was defeating Thanos on Titan.”

“You’re right, Strange,” Loki said with a smile. “You are our best chance at defeating Thanos. And you know exactly how you’ll need to do it, too.”

The nature of being a hero was sacrifice. Stephen knew that. He might hate it at times, but there was no denying it. But a special kind of horror washed over him as he realized what Loki was saying.

The nasty smile that was on Loki’s face was replaced by a sad one. “You can add a spell to protect in whatever spell you create. But, mark my words, Strange. This is how we will defeat Thanos.”

From the conference room, Stephen heard low voices and then Tony asked, “Friday, call Bruce again.”

Tony had already volunteered to use the bond once, when Stephen was fighting the Empirikul. Stephen hadn’t, maybe a little because he was so angry at the time, but mostly because this was a spell between sorcerers. There had never been an instance of a sorcerer using the bond with a non-magic user.

Stephen had no idea what it would do to Tony. He didn’t want to find out.

“For once, you’re giving me way too much credit,” he said, pacing the small room. “There will be other sorcerers. And you,” he said, listening to the voices in the other room. “Thor. Wanda.”

“Wanda is extremely powerful, but still lacks control,” Loki said, walking up to him. “Thor and I are powerful, but we are only each a single person.” He looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, “You are two.”

“Stark!” 

A familiar voice sounded in every speaker in the conference room.

For a split second, Stephen and Loki’s eyes met before they ran back into the room.

“Quill?” Tony shouted to the image Friday put on screen. 

Sirens sounded and red lights flashed on the screen, shaking distorting the image of Peter Quill’s bloodied face. He yelled orders to his crew while trying to regain control of his ship.

“Evasive maneuvers!” Quill shouted, his eyes fixed in front of him, his face twisted in terror and anger and dripping blood.

“Evasive maneuvers only work if the guy comin’ for you isn’t driving a small moon!” Rocket shouted.

“Oh, God,” Sam muttered under his breath.

“Are these the reinforcements?” Steve whispered.

“Quill! Talk to me!” Tony shouted.

“Stark, he knew exactly where to wait for us,” Quill said, not looking at Tony, his eyes still focused on whatever was ahead of him. “He isn’t just coming for the fleet. He’s following us, the Benetar.”

“Why?” Stephen asked Loki. “They don’t have a stone. There’s nothing they could have that he could possibly want.”

“Quill,” Nebula hissed as she held onto equipment to keep her feet. “He’s taken out the back firing cannons. We have nothing!”

Stephen felt his own heart drop, then felt the echo of Tony’s do the same as they both realized what Thanos was after.

“Oh, by the Norns! Quill!” Loki shouted. “Send your coordinates now.” He opened his pocket dimension and removed the Space Stone. “Your _exact_ coordinates!”

“What the hell are you doing?” Tony shouted, putting up a hand to stop him. “Opening up a portal _in space_?”

“At least clear the room, cast a shield—” Stephen shouted. The sound of metal grinding together cut him off. On screen, the color drained from Quill’s face, and the video cut off.

Stephen expected a barrage of questions from the Avengers, but none came. Everyone just sat there, the darkness of the room bearing down on them. As Tony attempted to reestablish the link, everyone else in the room came to fully understand exactly what they were up against.

Loki closed his pocket dimension and didn’t stop staring until Stephen looked away.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of angst in this chapter and in coming chapters, but I'll add humor and sweetness when I can. And yes, it's angsty but I promise a happy ending.
> 
> I keep thinking I'm going to get ahead of myself with it comes to chapters, but I'm going to stick to every two weeks schedule for now. 
> 
> Please let me know what you think. Thank you for sticking with this story!


	32. The Substance of Things Hoped For

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented and left kudos on the last chapter. I was tickled pink when some of you mentioned going to twitter to see #sadstrange and then remembering this is a fictional story. Best comments ever. 
> 
> In this chapter we see Stephen flex his 'don't touch my Tony muscles' a few times, so I hope everyone enjoys. 
> 
> Thank you again to silent_serendipity and glaucous_atlanticus for being amazing betas!

Stephen shut another book and shoved it toward the growing rejection pile.

He and Wong had gathered every book that even referenced the bond late last night and into the morning. After a short, restless sleep, Stephen camped out in Tony’s workshop with a small table, a Starkpad, and a pile of potentially helpful books that was growing smaller by the second.

Studying was usually much more enjoyable, but with every book added to the rejection pile Stephen felt the noose around his neck get that much tighter.

He’d had yet to find even one instance of the bond being formed between a sorcerer and non-magic user. Not one. Tony had even given him a Starkpad to use so taking notes would be easier on his hands, but it sat blank. He’d been searching for a spell—any spell—he could use in the fight against Thanos.

But every instance of power-sharing had been between two sorcerers, the lone exception being when Tony used Stephen’s power to trap Thanos on Titan.

And that wouldn’t help them this time. Thanos wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice.

He buried his head in his hands and took a deep breath. He didn’t have to worry about creating his own spell, and everything that might mean, just yet. There were so many other things to worry about, Stephen couldn’t pile another on. Not when there were still a small stack of books to go through.

He reached for his mug and rolled his eyes when he read ‘I married Tony Stark and all I got was this mug’ written on it. He grabbed a Sharpie, x’ed out ‘married’ for ‘bonded’ in his shaky script, then realized his tea had gone cold. The kettle was across the room, near Tony’s console.

Once Stephen looked over to Tony, he realized how absorbed he’d been in his reading.

Tony had the volume turned low, but he was speaking with Secretary Ross, and Stephen couldn’t imagine it was going well. The man looked way too smug.

“I knew it would come to this,” Ross said over the holographic screen. He leaned back in his chair and took a long drag on his cigar. “I think, in a way, you knew too. This is always how this was going to go, Stark.”

Yeah, there was zero chance he would be able to work like this. 

With a long frustrated sigh, Stephen put down his mug and the small, attainable dream of a hot cup of tea and maybe a kiss and a cuddle.

It had been such a small dream…

The Cloak stopped playing catch with DUM-E and floated to him as he walked towards Tony, but Stephen shook his head. 

On one hand, he knew Tony was a big boy who didn’t need rescuing. He’d been dealing with Ross and assholes like him for far longer than he’d been Iron Man. Stephen had no doubt that he could handle anything thrown at him.

But on the other hand, Tony had also been going with little sleep and an inhuman amount of stress for weeks. He didn’t need to be bonded to Tony to see he was on edge. It was in the way Tony’s feet shuffled and the way he talked with his hands more than usual. Normally, he was the only person in the room to know whatever Tony really felt. Ross was being such an incredible asshole that Tony was about to pop.

“Come down to what?” Tony shouted. “Protecting Earth’s interests? Cause I hate to break it to you, Ross. America is on planet Earth. Thanos isn’t just coming here for a wine mixer. He’s coming to destroy half of all life in the universe.”

"I thought the Avengers would be able to handle any threat that presented itself?" Ross asked, blowing smoke at the screen. What an idiot. It literally just drifted back in his face. “You were a breath away from relocating to New Asgard. Where’s the global community you were hiding behind before?”

There was a line. Stephen wasn’t sure where the line was, but he was fairly sure Ross was about to cross it.

“You and I both know where the real military power is,” Ross said, his lips twisted around his cigar. “And it’s not in New Asgard.”

Tony leaned back on his heel, stuck his hands in his pockets. The look on his face was pure disgust. “You would do that, wouldn’t you? You’d let people die out of spite?”

“Who’s dying?” Ross asked, waving his hand around. “The real danger is all the damage we took while your wizard friends were getting demolished in Tibet. I don’t see any monsters lurking outside our door. All I see is an angry, little boy throwing a fit because he’s not getting what he wants.”

Tony paled and his clenched his jaw.

Stephen saw red. 

_There’s the line._

He waited until Ross put the cigar back in his mouth to reach out a hand, twist, and ignite the embers into a small explosion.

The sound it made was small, but extremely satisfying, as was seeing Ross blown backwards in his chair. 

Tony jumped about a foot in the air, his eyes wide and fearful in shock as he turned to Stephen. The Cloak secured itself to his shoulders and lifted him a few inches off the ground.

Tony let out a huff and leaned over. “Damn, Doc, give me a heads up next time,” he said, righting himself and smiling at Stephen before turning back to Ross.

“Strange,” Ross croaked as he hauled himself from off the floor. His face was covered in soot and his eyebrows and mustache were singed off.

“Hello, Secretary Ross,” Stephen said with a grin. “I understand you’ve been wanting to speak with me for some time.”

Ross coughed, his eyes watering. 

“Oh, looks like you’re still on fire,” Stephen said, gesturing to his mustache. “Might want to…” 

Not stopping to check, Ross slapped himself right across the face in an effort to put out the non-existent flame.

Tony burst out laughing, the kind of laugh that was bordering on hysterical. Ross was still coughing and waving a hand to dissipate the smoke. His face was twisted in a scowl, a mismatch of black from the soot and red from the beating he’d just given himself. 

“You son of a—”

Stephen raised a finger, not to cast a spell though Ross clearly thought he would.

“I don’t care about your opinion, and I don’t care if you believe Tony or not,” Stephen said, his voice low. “You’re going to put your troops on high alert. You’re going to have jets ready to go. You’re going to do exactly what Tony’s told you to—”

“Or what?” Ross croaked. “Are you threatening me, Strange? Because I’ll remind you that I’m—”

Stephen created the portal before he could finish his sentence. He crossed the portal into Ross’ room—the Cloak billowing behind him—and walked right up to Ross’ face.

“Yes,” Stephen said, his voice so low it was almost a whisper. “I’m threatening you. You’ll do what Tony’s telling you to do. Whether it’s because you know it’s the right thing to do or because I’ll throw you into a bottomless void is up to you.”

From the workshop, Stephen heard Tony quietly say, “Friday, destroy all video in that room.”

“Are we in agreement?” Stephen asked, not backing up an inch.

Ross said nothing. He just stood there, giving Stephen one of the dirtiest looks he’d ever received, his face covered in singed hair and soot.

Stephen gave him a grin, then spun around to go back to the workshop, when there were the sounds of heavy fabric moving and the familiar click of a revolver being cocked.

Tony’s eyes went wide, the gauntlet forming around his hand as he dashed across the portal and into the room.

Stephen didn’t even bother turning around.

The Cloak leapt from his shoulders, disarming Ross and wrestling him to the ground in a heartbeat. The revolver skidded across the room, Tony picking it up and putting it in the waistband of his jeans.

While the Cloak was subduing Ross, Tony ran his hands over Stephen quickly, checking he was okay. Stephen allowed it, but held his tongue and tried to hide his exasperated grin.

He had faced demons, genocidal dictators, mad zealots, and rogue sorcerers. There was no way an old man with a .38 would take him out.

“Cloak,” he said, almost idly. The Cloak reluctantly let Ross go and swept back onto Stephen’s shoulders.

“Hey, asshole,” Tony hissed. “How did you think that was going to go? What do you think would have happened to you if you’d actually shot him?”

“I don’t think he was thinking at all, Tony,” Stephen said. “He has his instructions. He’ll either deliver on them or face the consequences.”

Stephen took Tony’s hand and led them out of the room, back to Tony’s workshop. 

Once the portal closed, Stephen exhaled, letting his shoulders fall a bit. 

“Tony, I’m sorry,” he said, preparing himself to be reminded Tony didn’t need defending. “I know you could have handled that call, but I just couldn’t allow him to speak to you that way. Not after everything—”

His apology was cut off as Tony attacked his mouth.

“That was the hottest thing I have ever seen, Doc,” Tony said, kissing Stephen deeply. “No one has ever been on my side like you are. I swear, Stephen.” He wrapped his arms around him and kissed him deeply, Stephen surprised but happy Tony didn’t feel demeaned.

“Of—mmm—of course,” Stephen said, around a kiss. “Team Stark.”

“Mmm,” Tony said, then broke away. “I have to suck your cock. Right now.”

“What, um, er—” Stephen said, then blinked and came to his senses. “Alright.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t make the rules,” Tony said, attempting to take Stephen’s trousers off. “Come on, why are all your clothes so complicated? All I need right now is your dick. Gimme.”

“Sorry to interrupt, boss,” Friday said, “but I think you’ll want to see what’s happening on the front lawn of the Compound.”

Tony threw his head back and groaned. “No, I don’t. I really, really don’t.”

He might not, but Stephen did. “What is it, Friday?” Stephen asked.

“Loki and Wanda are casting spells that seem a bit…”

That was all Stephen needed to hear for him to regretfully say goodbye to an afternoon blowjob and open a portal onto the yard. 

There was a wide, smoking hole in the middle of the front lawn of the Compound. Wanda stood in front of it, dust on her face, leaning over like she was trying to catch her breath. 

Loki stood in front of her with a look of exasperation.

“You’re getting closer, but you’re still lacking the control you need,” Loki said to her. “Your goal is to make the blast deeper, not wider. I want you to focus your power on one specific point.”

Wanda nodded, her hair tangled and her face still red from exertion. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, not seeming to notice the portal that was still open on the Compound lawn.

“And perhaps be more aware of your surroundings,” Stephen said, stepping out onto the lawn.

“Ah, Strange,” Loki said, a smile on his face that said he knew exactly why he and Tony were there and didn’t give a damn. “Come for a demonstration?”

“No,” Stephen said. “I was attempting research when Friday alerted us to…whatever this is.”

“What the hell happened to my lawn?” Tony asked softly. “Is it weird that I want to yell ‘get off my lawn?’”

The casual smile melted off Loki’s face. “And how is your…research going?”

Stephen met his eyes and gave a small shake of his head.

Loki cleared his throat and stole a quick glance at Tony. “In answer to your question, lessons,” Loki said. “Wanda has an incredible amount of power at her disposal, but she’s had no training.”

Wanda shook her head, her face twisted in a dark scowl. “That’s not exactly true.”

Loki cleared his throat. “Yes, well. Bad training is worse than no training at all.”

Stephen knew Loki had been right when he’d said the fight against Thanos would be fought and won by magic and magic alone. He also knew that everything would be better in his and Tony’s lives if they supported Wanda’s training and helped her to control her powers. In theory he completely understood what was happening here.

In practice, he wondered if tearing holes in the ground was the best way to go about it.

“Kamar-Taj has training grounds specifically for this sort of thing,” Stephen said.

“I thought you said they were rebuilding,” Wanda said.

“Yes, and don’t they absolutely hate me?” Loki asked, confused. “Why would I ever want to go there?”

“Don’t worry, Snowflake,” Tony said, walking over. “They hate me, too. Listen,” he said, looking directly at Wanda. His hand made it halfway to the crystal around his neck, but managed to let it fall back against his side. “I know you and I have our issues, but…this is a good idea.”

Wanda nodded, then looked at her shoes.

“But there’s probably a better place to practice though.”

“Let me think for a moment,” Stephen said to them. He tapped his lips, then said to Tony, “We could place them in the mirror dimension.”

“What is that?” Tony asked.

“A place where Wanda could let loose, but the real world wouldn’t be affected,” Stephen said. “It’s a place where we train, but…you don’t want to be stuck there without a sling ring.”

“Excellent,” Loki said, holding his hand out. “I’ll just take that then.”

“Yeah, no,” Stephen said. Because yeah, no.

“Come now,” Loki said, wiggling his fingers. “That piece of metal around your finger can literally bend space.” He looked at Stephen’s ring with longing. “If I had one of those I wouldn’t need to carry around an Infinity Stone.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Stephen said. “Still, no. Don’t worry, I’ll think of something.”

With a smirk, Loki turned on his heel back to Wanda.

“Wanda, I want you to think of this as a bullet versus a bomb,” Loki said to her, completely ignoring Tony and Stephen.

“I have some properties in California that are pretty far out from cities,” Tony said. “Would that work?”

“You don’t always need to cause as much destruction as possible,” Loki continued. “Sometimes, you just need to accomplish one goal.”

“It might,” Stephen said. “But then how are we going to get them back? A jet? I really don’t want to have to be on portal call.”

“Fair,” Tony said.

“Watch this,” Loki said, then twisted his hands a certain way, his palms glowing green.

Stephen recognized that spell…

With a twist of his body, Loki cupped the black hole in his hands and sent it barreling towards Stephen, the fathomless maw growing in size as it came for him.

Stephen thrust himself into front of Tony, twisted his hands together and cast the Hoary Hosts of Hoggath a split second before the black hole would have enveloped him.

A kaleidoscope of butterflies flitted about where the black hole once was.

_Panic_

_Fear_

_Desolation_

Tony looked like he was about to collapse. “What the fuck!”

“That’s it!” Stephen shouted. “The both of you are going to the New York Sanctum. There are rooms there that are spelled to take this kind of damage.”

“Seriously!” Tony shouted. “What the ever loving fuck!”

Stephen turned on his heel and saw Tony wasn’t quite looking at him, but looking just a little past him. He hurried and gathered him into his arms, letting the Cloak envelope the both of them in its warmth. 

“It’s alright,” Stephen whispered. “It’s just Loki being Loki.” He closed his eyes, felt the sputtering little engine behind his heart. 

_You’re safe with me. I won’t let anything happen to you._

He tucked Tony closer into him and hoped that was a promise he could keep. 

“That was amazing!” Wanda shouted somewhere behind Stephen.

“A standard battle tactic,” Loki said. “But you see why you want a specific target in mind? If I hadn’t created such a small black hole in the first place, by the time it got to Strange it could have swallowed the whole Compound.”

“Right,” Stephen said, his voice low and dark. A few of his butterflies came to sit on their shoulders.

“Oh, God,” Tony muttered, his body still shaking. “Doc…”

“Here, look,” Stephen said, knowing that Tony enjoyed his butterflies. He held his finger out for one to land on. “Look, Tony. Take a deep breath, and focus on this.”

Still shaking, Tony took his face from Stephen’s shoulder and looked at the butterfly perched on his finger. His breaths slowed down and his eyes focused on the bright blue of the butterfly’s wings. After a few minutes, it worked and Tony exhaled, relaxing just the tiniest bit in Stephen’s arms. 

“My very own Disney prince,” Tony said with a tired smile, taking the butterfly onto his own finger.

“So we’ll continue to work on focusing your spells once we get to Strange’s house,” Loki said shooing away a butterfly. He turned to Stephen and said, “I trust you’ll have refreshments?”

His arms still around Tony—the both of them covered in butterflies—Stephen knew he probably didn’t look very intimidating at the moment. That didn’t stop him from giving Loki his best glare.

Wanda cleared her throat and walked up to him. “Thank you for letting us practice in the Sanctum, Doctor Strange,” she said, lacing her fingers together before putting her hands at her side again. “I really do feel like I’m learning so much.”

Stephen considered Tony in his arms, Tony who had been so terrified of Wanda, of what she had done to him and could do to him any time she liked before Stephen had shown up.

Then he considered the young woman in front of him, whom he had no reason to doubt. Wanda seemed contrite and earnest, in that way that only people with misspent youths could be.

“You’re welcome,” Stephen said after only a moment’s pause. Stephen finally closed the portal to the workshop and opened another to the Sanctum front hall.

“Come with me for a moment,” Stephen whispered to Tony. “I’ll bring you back here quickly. Okay?”

“Yeah,” Tony said, sounding more like himself. “Sure, Doc.”

Stephen created the portal to the Sanctum, and they all walked through to the other side.

Wanda immediately began looking around, delighted by the restored staircase, high ceilings, and sitting room with the fireplace.

“Oh, the Norns help her if she’s impressed by this dump,” Loki muttered.

Before Stephen could retaliate, the Cloak gave Loki a bop on the head.

“The kitchen is that way,” Stephen said, pointing out the most sacred room in the house. “I’ll show you a room where you can practice.”

By some miracle they didn’t run into anyone on the way there. All the sorcerers and novices that had come over from Kamar-Taj must have been training in a different area of the Sanctum or helping with the rebuilding.

Regardless, Stephen took the small victory. He wouldn’t have to deal with any sorcerers being openly hostile to either Wanda or Loki. Neither of them deserved that, especially when they were specifically here to gain knowledge and practice.

He led them to a room that would be able to take a beating from either of them, wished them well, and led Tony back to the library.

“You really think they’ll be okay here?” Tony asked. “I don’t think the sorcerers like either one of them.”

“They don’t, no,” Stephen said. “But if Loki is correct—and I think he is—their magic will help us defeat Thanos.” Stephen sighed and sat down in his chair, rubbing his eyes. “Plus, Loki is right. Bad training is worse than no training at all.”

“The amount of times you’ve said Loki is right recently is really unsettling," Tony said.

“Hmm.” Stephen looked up through his fingers. “You okay?” Tony was shifting on his feet again. “You feel…alright, but that scared _me_. I can only imagine what was going through your head.” Tony felt anxious and worried, but no more than he normally did these days. 

Tony nodded, a far-off look in his eyes for a moment, then seemed to focus again.

“Black holes and me do not mix well, at least historically,” Tony said, then slid onto Stephen’s lap. “Good thing I have my court sorcerer to protect me.”

Stephen smiled and wrapped his arms around Tony’s hips. “Is that what I am?”

“Well, let’s see,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around Stephen’s neck. “You protect me,” he ticking off one finger. “You advise me in situations I have absolutely zero knowledge in.” Another finger ticked. “You’re a very good bed warmer.”

“Ah, I see how it is,” Stephen said, smiling into a kiss. “You only love me for my body.”

“No, I meant a literal bed warmer,” he deadpanned. “You’re like a little furnace in bed.”

Stephen tried to push him off.

“Ha!” Tony laughed. “A very sexy hot water bottle. It’s honestly not even you, really. It’s mostly the Cloak.” 

The Cloak traced Tony’s cheek like it was a pop kiss.

“Love you too, Red.” Then he looked at Stephen, his eyes smiling and the weight of the world lifted from his shoulders, even if only for a moment. “And I love you,” he said. “You saved me twice today, Doc.” With a smile that was more mischievous he said, “How can I ever repay you?”

“Oh, no repayment required, I’m your court sorcerer,” Stephen said, running his hands over Tony’s back. “But as your bed warmer, I believe I’ll need to go to bed early tonight.”

“Ooh, you drive a hard bargain, I accept,” Tony said, then kissed him. Stephen wrapped an arm around Tony’s shoulder and kissed back, like there were no cares for either of them. For a moment, they were two men in love, making out in a magic library.

“Mmm,” Stephen hummed. “In a perfect world, we could just turn in right now. But we should get back to work.” He pulled away from Tony, already regretting being responsible.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “Are you going to come back with me or stay here?”

Stephen hummed. “With the chaos duo in residence, I think it’s best if I stay here.”

“Right,” Tony said. “But I’ll see you tonight? I guarantee I’ll remember to sleep if I have my hot water bottle go with me.” He tickled the Cloak’s collar. “Oh, and you can come too, Doc.”

“I see how it is. Perhaps I’ll stay at the Sanctum tonight, then.” Now that Stephen said it, staying at the Sanctum made sense. “Actually, would you mind coming over tonight? That way I can continue working, and I can still keep an eye on Loki and Wanda.”

Tony considered it, obviously weighing whether or not he should leave the Compound with Thanos on the way.

“I can portal you to the Compound in a second if you’re needed there.” He smiled up at him. “I’ll be your portal sorcerer.”

Softly, Tony took Stephen’s face into both his hands. “How can I say no to that?” He kissed him one more time, then pulled away. “You’re not going to pull an all-nighter, are you?”

“And follow your good example?” Stephen asked, then actually considered the question. “Maybe I’ll slip into my astral form. That way I can be your bed warmer and also keep researching our bond.”

Tony looked at him like he’d just told him he’d killed Thanos, murdered Ross, and took down every bad picture of him from the internet.

“ _You can do that?_ ” he asked, with stars in his eyes. “You can be awake and working while your body is getting the ridiculous amount of rest it requires?”

On second thought, it was probably a bad idea to bring this up, and Stephen was already regretting it. 

Tony looked so earnest, then sank to the floor, put his hands in Stephen’s lap.

“Teach me! Please!”

“No,” Stephen said. “It’s not something you should do long-term. After a while, it can cause a lot of complications. If I do it tonight, I won’t be doing it tomorrow.”

“No fair!” Tony said. “Why do you get to keep working and I have to do the dead for five hours thing.”

“Such is life,” Stephen said flippantly.

“I hate life, ugh,” Tony said. “Fine. I’ll come over after I’m done with work.” He rubbed his temples and smothered a yawn. “Do you think you can remind me when it’s night?”

“That’s assuming I’ll remember when to put my books down.” He rubbed his temples with frustration. “I’ll try to remember. Or maybe the Cloak will.” 

The Cloak nodded its collar.

“Thank you, my friend,” Stephen said. “The Vishanti knows Tony always ignores poor Friday.”

“True,” Tony said. “But hey, why don’t you ask…” Tony looked at Stephen’s pocket, where his phone was currently located, then squinted. “You know, I don’t think you ever told me the name of your phone.”

“Name?” Stephen asked.

Tony looked at him with a confused expression. “Hey, Stephen’s phone,” he said, then waited for the beep. “What did Stephen name you?”  


“I am ‘phone,’ Mr. Stark.”

Tony’s eyes went wide then he threw his hands up. “Sorry, buddy,” Tony said to Stephen’s _phone_. “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to him.”

“Talk to me about what?”

“Why didn’t you name your phone? He’s an AI. I made him for you.”

Stephen knew what all those words meant, but they made no sense to him. “What?” Stephen shouted.

“Or is it ‘phone’ like the way the Cloak is ‘Cloak.’ Like, did you name all the cows on the farm ‘cow?’

“All this time I’ve had an AI like Friday in my pocket?” Stephen asked. “ _The entire time?_ ”

“Yes, sir,” the phone said.

“Not quite as complex as Friday, no, but still an AI. Definitely has…you know. A personality,” Tony nodded towards the phone pointedly. “And feelings.”

Tony gave Stephen an uncharacteristically serious look, then just pointed to the phone. 

On one hand, this was one of the more ridiculous conversations Stephen had… 

Well, maybe not in his life but at least the last few days.

But on the other, Stephen knew Friday was very protective of Tony and was often offended on his behalf. Plus, the Cloak was an object created by magic, and Stephen knew it was a real person.

Putting it that way, he suddenly felt like Tony’s glare was justified.

“I’m very sorry for how I’ve treated you, phone,” Stephen said, feeling just a little ridiculous. “What would you like to be called?”

The phone was quiet for a moment, then said, “How about Vincent, sir? That way you’ll be less inclined to completely forget about me.”

“Oh!” Tony shouted, then clapped. “Stephen, that was your first AI sassing. Get used to it. They’re all their own person.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Say, Vinnie,” Tony said. “Why didn’t you just say something? Why wait and just hang out in his pocket?”

Vincent was quiet for a moment. “When Doctor Strange first took me out of my box, he and Wong were very intimidated by me.”

_Oh, no._

Stephen remembered that day well. That was also the day Tony had unknowingly set up a repair and construction fund for Kamar-Taj. He hadn’t known that the phone in his hand had been listening in on his conversation.

“Um, what?” Tony asked, visibly trying to hold back a laugh.

“Yes, sir. They were afraid they’d break me, and wondered if I would require a blood sacrifice. I decided to stay quiet so as not to frighten them.”

Tony fell onto his side laughing. Stephen put Vincent on the arm of his chair.

“We were joking,” Stephen said dryly, once Tony had calmed down.

“You don’t need to lie, Doc,” Tony said, wiping his eyes. “I’m sure the little rectangle made of nanoparticles was very scary. Hang on,” he said, then put Vincent in his pocket. “I vanquished him for you.”

“Ha ha ha,” Stephen deadpanned. “Look at all the low-hanging—”

“Incoming transmission from Peter Quill, boss,” Friday said from Tony’s other pocket.

Stephen had his sling ring in hand, about to open a portal, when Friday said, “It’s a recorded message.”

Tony fished the phone out of his pocket, and gave Vincent back to Stephen. 

“Play the message, Friday.”

A small holographic screen popped up between them. 

Peter Quill looked bloodied and defeated, his clothes torn and singed. Drax and Rocket were strapped into their seats behind him, but the ship had taken obvious damage.

“Stark,” he started, then took a deep breath. “So it took the past day, but we managed to get the engines going. That’s about all we got right now.”

He bit his lip and focused on something off-camera. “He was after the Benetar. Probably should have guessed since he ignored all the Star Blasters and came straight for us.

“He took Nebula.”

Stephen closed his eyes, knowing exactly what that meant. 

Earth had five Infinity Stones. There was only one stone that had successfully made it off-planet. And now Thanos was going for that one. 

And when he came to Earth, he’d have all six Infinity Stones within his reach. If he was able to get his hands on the gauntlet and other stones…

“I don’t know if we’ll get there in time,” Quill said, “but we’re gonna try. He doesn’t get to have both of them. Not—”

Drax and Rocket both had their heads bowed, uncharacteristically quiet as Quill gathered himself.

“So I’m not sure how late we’ll be. The fleet is still on its way to you. Well, the ones that got away,” he said, a dark look on his face. “I’ll send another message when we’re on our way. If you don’t hear from us…”

The message ended and Tony put his phone down, but he kept his eyes on it. His hand searched for Stephen’s, grabbing it just a little too tight for just a moment when he finally found it.

“Sorry,” he whispered at Stephen's wince, then loosened his grip. “I hate this. I hate that we’re just waiting like this. I knew this was coming…years ago. I feel like I should have been building a fleet of ships instead of…”

“Dealing with your own life?” Stephen asked. “The fallout with the Avengers? Any of the other projects you’ve committed yourself to?” Stephen picked up Tony’s hand and kissed his palm. “You might be Tony Stark, but you’re still only one man.”

“Yeah,” he said distantly. “Do you really think you’ll find something? About this,” he said, gesturing between the two of them, “that would help us finally end this?”

“I’m still looking,” Stephen said, thinking of that pile of books that was getting smaller and smaller. “The problem is, this bond is…uncomplicated. Two sorcerers are able to share powers. It was never planned to be used with someone with no magic.”

He’d go through the last of the books tonight, and if he wasn’t able to find something…

When Stephen looked into the future on Titan, he had known that Tony wouldn’t permanently hurt him. It was the very nature of the bond. But he had no idea what would happen to Tony if they used the bond the other way around. And he was running out of places to search.

“Stephen,” Tony said, and there was something in his voice that made Stephen’s thoughts stop. “What happens if you can’t find what you’re looking for?”

A feeling of dread washed over him like an icy wave. He’d cling to hope until he read the last page of the last book. “Then…I’d have to create my own spell.”

He nodded and looked at Stephen like he could see right through him. “And why is the idea of doing that so terrifying to you?” Tony asked.

_No chance of hiding anything with this bond._

Stephen had wanted to delay this talk until he knew for sure it was needed, but now that Tony asked he wouldn’t lie to him.

“Because I don’t know what channeling your power would do to you.” Stephen laced both their hands together. “It’s never been done before. And a spell powerful enough to defeat Thanos… Tony, I’ll be attempting something no one has ever done before.”

Tony looked at Stephen for a moment and read between the lines. He jostled his fingers against Stephen’s, then cleared his throat.

“So…what’s the worst case scenario?” he asked.

The icy wave was back, but this time it washed over Stephen and threatened to take him under completely.

And of course Tony knew him well enough to know exactly what that meant.

He blinked once, twice, then nodded. He studied their joint hands for a moment, then leaned over and kissed Stephen softly.

“Hey,” he whispered against Stephen’s lips. “What does this feel like to you?” he asked, putting Stephen’s hand on his chest, right under his heart.

Physically, it felt like Tony’s chest and all the scarring that could be felt through the cotton of his shirt. But more than that, Stephen felt the bond. The living, breathing connection between them.

“Even when we barely knew each other,” Tony said softly, punctuating his sentence with a kiss. “Even when I was angry that my life had been taken from me, this,” he said, putting his own hand on Stephen’s chest, “never felt bad. This thing that connects us…it’s a good thing. It’s always been a good thing. I don’t think it would let that happen.”

Stephen shook his head. He had no such faith.

“Just…” Tony said and a soft smile took over his face. “I trust this. And I trust you. And if you have to create a spell, I trust that you’ll do exactly what’s necessary. And this,” he waved between them again, “would know exactly what’s needed. It’s the one thing I trust.”

“Tony, I think you’re overestimating me,” Stephen said. “Spell crafting is not something I’ve studied excessively. Even creating your amulet was a task,” he said, running his fingers over the small amethyst.

“No, Doc, I just know you.” Tony kissed his hand and stood up. He looked around the room, then down at Stephen and laughed. “Look at this. Isn’t this weird?” 

“Isn’t what weird?” Stephen asked, standing up.

“Magic used to terrify me. Now look at me,” Tony said, taking Stephen’s hand again. “I’m here in your magic library, and you just invited me to spend the night.” His feet stayed on the ground, the hand in Stephen’s was still. "This thing between us…it’s one of the few things in life I really trust.”

The faith Tony had in him was amazing but nowhere near as deserved as Tony seemed to think it was. 

He took one look at Stephen’s face and smiled sadly. “You’ll see, Doc. All of this is going to turn out fine.”

“Oh, for fuck sake!” Stephen shouted, just as he’d been about to embrace Tony. “Why did you say that?”

“What?”

“‘It’s all going to turn out fine’? You might as well say ‘it can’t get any worse’ or ‘I’ll be right back.’”

“Okay, I think someone needs a snack,” Tony said, patting Stephen’s face.

Stephen bit his finger.

Tony gasped playfully. “The other sorcerers know you’re a cannibal?”

Stephen kissed the same finger gently, then created a portal back to Tony’s workshop. “I’ll see you tonight.”

“Thanks for the ride, Doc,” Tony said, crossing over to the workshop. Just as Stephen was closing the portal, Tony turned around, winked, and shouted, “I’ll be right back!” 

Stephen let the portal close with a roll of his eyes, then made his way to the kitchen. He really did need a snack.

*

It was just after two in the morning, and Stephen poured over the last known book that had any reference towards the bond. He went back and reread paragraphs that he knew by heart, hoping for something, anything that would give him any of the information he needed.

It was the last book, and it had nothing. No history of the bond ever being used on a regular person, no hint at what kind of effect it might have. 

He had no other choice. Stephen would have to craft the spell himself, having no idea what it could do to Tony.

The power transfer on Titan had been terrible for Stephen, and the spell was created for sorcerers. There was no way of knowing that Stephen using the bond this way wouldn’t hurt Tony.

Or kill him.

He buried his head in his hands and cursed Thanos, the Empirikul, and every step along the way that brought him to this point.

The Cloak wrapped itself around him, bundling him in an embrace he desperately needed.

“Doctor Strange?”

The muffled voice came from his pocket. “Yes, Vincent?”

“It’s two, sir. You asked me to remind you to stop working now.”

Stephen took several deep breaths, then took Vincent out of his pocket “Thank you,” he said. “Is Tony still asleep?”

Vincent was quiet for a moment, then said, “Friday says he’s still asleep, sir.”

“Good.” That gave Stephen an opportunity to slip back into bed unnoticed and hopefully get at least a few hours of sleep.

Just as he stood up, he heard a portal being opened in the front hall. There were heavy footsteps, and the smell of freshly cut wood and tilled earth.

Wong entered the room, his eyes looking over the stack of books, then taking in what must have been an absolute look of desolation on Stephen’s face.

“I consulted with the elders,” Wong said.

Stephen gave a dark chuckle. “Oh? How’d that go?”

“About as well as all that,” Wong said, gesturing to the pile.

“I’m surprised they offered to help at all,” said Stephen.

“They are not fools,” Wong said. “They walk a difficult line with you, Stephen. It would not be a good idea to completely antagonize the new sorcerer supreme.”

Stephen grunted and began to pace the library. “I can’t think about that right now. Not when I have all this to contend with.”

Stephen rubbed his hands over his face, the desire to scream bubbling up in his chest, almost overwhelming. The Cloak took his hands in its folds and cradled them.

“What did they summon you for in the first place?” he asked Wong.

“My report on the Avengers’ meeting,” Wong said. “And I had to inform them of Loki and Wanda training in the Sanctum.”

Stephen sighed. “I bet they loved that.”

“Stephen,” Wong said, reaching out to grab Stephen’s forearm. “I know why you’re afraid.” 

Stephen had considered Wong a friend for years now. He was the first person he’d sought after he’d returned from Titan, had given the shovel talk to Tony, rushed to his defense when faced with the witchfinder wolves, had cut Loki’s face for Vishanti’s sake.

But he’d never seen Wong look quite as concerned about him as he looked right now.

“I will help you,” Wong said. “We start tomorrow. There are sigils of protection we can use.” With his other hand he gripped Stephen’s shoulder. “I know what you fear. I will—”

“Will he die?” Stephen asked. At that moment, he didn’t give a damn about anything but that. After everything he’d endured, after everything he’d be asked to give up if he became sorcerer supreme, he couldn’t sacrifice Tony. 

The grip on his shoulder tightened. 

“We will not let it happen.”

The look in Wong’s eyes was absolute where Stephen was consumed with fear. There was no other avenue ahead of them, and they were out of options.

But he couldn’t lose Tony.

“The time has come for us to stop relying on the spells of others. This business with the Empirikul proved that. You are a powerful sorcerer, Stephen. I have absolute faith in you.”

Stephen almost choked on his next breath. That meant a tremendous amount, coming from Wong. Wong, who never sugar-coated his words, who never shied away from telling him the truth.

He held onto that. He held onto Wong’s faith in him, and remembered that he’d already beaten Thanos once. After all his trials, after all he’d studied and trained, and all the battles he’d won, he grasped hold of Wong’s faith like the lifeline it was.

He did the only thing he could do. He grabbed Wong’s hand, held it as tightly as he could. 

Stephen took a deep breath and grabbed onto hope.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got to introduce Vincent! I'd been trying to get him in there for several chapters, but he never came up naturally. He finally made his debut, poor thing.
> 
> Thank you all for sticking with me in the fic! It's gonna be rocky, but I hope to tell the best story possible. : )
> 
> I'm going to attempt to post excerpts of new chapters on my [tumblr](https://atypical-snowman.tumblr.com), so if you'd like you can follow me there.
> 
> See you in two weeks!


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